Teens & Tribulations
by TDCSI
Summary: Grissom and Sara have begun to make a life together when a young boy and his sister steal the hearts of our favorite CSI's. Sara's ready for change, what about Grissom? GSR Now COMPLETE
1. Chapter 1

Teens and Tribulations

Disclaimer: Do you really think if I owned CSI or CBS for that matter I would sharing a one bedroom apartment in Canyon, Texas with 2 dogs and a cat. I think not.

Rating: T++

Summary: Grissom and Sara try to move ahead with their newfound relationship, but a teen and his little sister find their way into the hearts of our beloved CSI's

Shout outs: Hey thanks to thegreatbluespoon. She thought of the title and is there to give me the often needed virtual "slap on the back of the head" when I need it. And also Just Thinking, what would I do without you?

* * *

Chapter 1

Grissom sat nervously behind his desk. He had sent the rest of the team out on assignment, but kept one in reserve so he could work with Sara.

She was late. He knew the real reason but had only revealed to the others that she had mentioned something about a doctor's appointment. Well, he only partially lied. He sat clicking a pen when she knocked at his door.

"Are you waiting on me?"

"I figured you could work with me. So?"

"So... what?"

"What did the doctor say?"

She slipped in and took a seat. With a heavy sigh she answered.

"I'm totally fine. Nothing to indicate any problems of any kind."

"Maybe it's me."

"She did suggest that you also get a check up."

"I'll make an appointment for tomorrow. In the mean time we have a case."

He waived the slip in the air.

"Ready." he asked.

"Aren't I always?"

He smiled and they headed out.

* * *

Brass greeted them as they walked away from the Denali.

"Hey, DB's inside. We have the suspect in custody already. He confessed, even called 911 himself."

"I'm confused." Grissom stated.

"Maybe you had better talk to him."

Brass led them over to where a young man stood next to a police cruiser in hand cuffs. Grissom had him pegged at no older than sixteen.

"What's your name?"

"Jason Miller, sir." His eyes remained focused on his shoes.

Sara began to put on her gloves to collect evidence off of the young man.

"How old are you Jason?"

"Thirteen."

Grissom and Sara looked at each other. She bent down to collect the blood evidence off of his shoes.

"Jason, look at me." Grissom waited until the boy lifted his head. "Can you tell me what happened?"

"I told him to leave her alone."

"Leave who alone?"

"My sister. Well half sister. She's lived with us for a few months now. Our mother died and she came to live with me and my dad when she was three. He never liked her, and I would see the way he would look at her, or the way he would touch her."

Sara stiffened up. She knew exactly where this was going. Grissom also had that bad feeling creeping up in his gut.

"Like I said, I told him to leave her alone, but he didn't listen. I didn't stop him the first time, and I couldn't let him get away with it again."

Grissom continued with his questions. "Jason, how old is your sister?"

"She's five."

Sara bagged the evidence and stood to face Jason.

"Oh my God."

"What?" Grissom and Sara asked at the same time.

"You look just like my aunt."

"Who's your aunt?" Grissom curtly asked.

"Oh, she died a few years ago. Her name was Debbie. She was my mom's sister."

"Debbie Marlin?" Grissom continued.

"Yeah. How do you know her?"

Sara quickly answered, "We investigated her murder. Jason where is your sister?"

"I think she's inside, hiding."

"Thank you Jason." Grissom was as polite as could be with the boy.

Grissom took Sara by the elbow and walked back to Brass. But Sara couldn't help herself. "What are the odds that we run into a relative of Debbie Marlin?"

Brass over heard and spun around to face them. "What, are you kidding?"

"I'm afraid not. He said his sister is still inside. Have you found her?" Grissom asked.

"No, my guys are still looking for her."

"Well we are going to start processing inside. Keep him here for now will you.?" Grissom motioned to Jason.

"Sure."

Grissom and Sara entered the small two story house with their flashlights illuminating the way.

"I'll take upstairs." Sara said as she headed to the stair case.

Grissom didn't verbally answer. Only with a short nod did she continue her journey. He headed into the kitchen following the bloody foot prints. Grissom looked over the body. A middle aged man lay face down on the linoleum, and a large blood pool had formed around his torso. Grissom concluded that he bled out from the single gunshot through the abdomen.

He took several pictures of the body and room. A small hand gun lay on the table. Grissom bagged it and headed back outside.

"Jason, I want to do a test on your clothes ok?"

"Uh, sure."

"Officer would you un-cuff him please?"

"What's that?" Jason pointed to the small spray bottle that Grissom was holding.

"It's Sodium Rhodizonate. It will tell me if you fired a gun recently."

"I already told you I shot him."

"I know. We just need to confirm your account."

Grissom sprayed the solution over the front of Jason's clothes and instantly it revealed the GSR.

"I need your sweatshirt."

Jason pulled it off and handed it to Grissom. The officer placed the cuffs back on him as Grissom bagged the shirt.

"Thank you."

Grissom headed back inside and nearly ran into Sara. She spoke in a hushed tone.

"I found her."

"Where?"

She motioned for him to follow as he called Brass to send for an ambulance.

Sara led him in to what appeared to be Jason's room. Grissom stopped and stared in amazement at the sight before him.

"What's wrong? Don't tell me your room looked like this when you were a kid?"

"I wish." he continued to gawk at his surroundings forgetting all about the little girl.

Jason's room was completely dark, lit only by black lights. Shelves lined two walls entirely, one wall held a long table next to a desk and computer, and on that table were several microscopes. Grissom noticed one was on, illuminating the slide it was holding and he walked over to peek at its contents. He then moved to observe the items lining the shelves. Several craniums from small animals were floating in their specimen jars. Others contained smaller animals like mice and snakes. Grissom was in total awe at the entire room.

"Hellooo. Earth to Grissom, come in Grissom."

"Sorry. Got caught up in the moment."

"I have eyes. She's in here."

He moved next to Sara and looked into the large closet with his flashlight.

"She is?"

"Look harder."

Grissom pursed his lips and noticed the small splice in the sheetrock lining the back of the closet. He smiled and looked up at Sara.

"A crawl space?"

"A panic room. I think he built it for her."

"Well he certainly has the know how." he motioned to the room.

"How should we get her out?"

"Well, you do look like Debbie Marlin, and if she saw her aunt before she died..."

"You think she will come to me."

"I know she will. Just humor me ok."

They both found the small hidden latch and opened the compartment. Sara stuck her head in and found the young brunette huddled up in the far corner, shaking with fear.

"Hey, it's ok. I'm here to help you. Your brother is outside waiting for you."

Her voice was quiet and soothing. Soon after more convincing the little girl inched her way to Sara. Once out of the confined space, the girl had her arms around her neck and buried her face in Sara's shoulder. She lifted the girl in to her arms and stood.

Grissom escorted them down to the waiting ambulance.

"I'm going with her."

"Sara..."

"No. I'm going with her. It's not a request Grissom."

"Sara, she'll be fine. Put her down and let's finish processing."

She looked at him as if her eyes were lasers. Brass moved away, he had seen that look on women before and knew better than to argue. Poor Grissom did not.

"I'm taking her to the hospital. I'll process her there."

"And child protective services will take her from there."

"Yeah."

"I don't like the tone in your voice. I mean it Sara. You're already too close on this one. Don't make me pull rank."

"Fine, pull rank, take me off the case, I don't care, but I'm staying with her."

She reached forward and slammed the back of the ambulance and it drove off. Grissom watched until the tail lights were out of site before Brass approached him. He laid a hand on Grissom's shoulder.

"One of these days you will figure out that you can't argue with a woman, especially that woman." His hand pointed in the direction the ambulance had gone.

Grissom turned and raised an eyebrow at Brass.

"Let's go back to work."

TBC

Please let me know what you think so far. I'm curious as to what you think of it so far. Chapter 2 is not far behind.


	2. Chapter 2

Thank you to my beta's, Just Thinking, GSfanatic, and the sarcasim of thegreatbluespoon.

* * *

Teens & Tribulations

Chapter 2

Grissom returned to the lab and dropped off all of the evidence he had collected. Later he met up with Brass and took Jason's official confession.

He had been trying to get in touch with Sara, but to no avail. Checking his watch he noticed that it was slightly after seven a.m. Grissom headed to his office to make some last minute phone calls before hunting Sara down. His phone was blinking indicating to him that there was a message.

Grissom lifted the receiver and listened to the messages. He scowled as he listened to Ecklie's ignorant voice boom into his ear. Quickly, he deleted the message and listened to the second one. Grissom's lips pursed instinctively as he listened to Sara plead her case as to why she was still at the hospital. He knew she was relating to what the little girl had gone through. As he was getting ready to leave, Brass stopped him.

"The DA wants your opinion on this case."

"The evidence is still being processed."

"I know, I told him, but he's not listening to me. He's waiting in Ecklie's office."

Grissom furrowed his eyebrows and led the way to Ecklie's office.

"Ah, Gil. Where are we on this case with the teen killing his father?"

"The evidence is still being processed. Yes, he confessed, but I don't think this is a case to rush through court."

"I'm not rushing. I'm considering dropping the charges."

Grissom and Brass stood in shock.

"Well, I mean look at it this way. He's thirteen, a brilliant student, and claims his father was abusing his little sister, so he killed him. No jury would convict him."

"Alright. I'm still going to have all the evidence processed."

"Fine Gil." Ecklie broke in, "Oh, and what do you intend to do about CSI Sidle?"

"Sara? What did she do to you now?"

"I heard about the way she was back-talking you at the scene. I can't have that in my lab. Take action or I will."

"Fine. Are we done here?"

With a few nods of acknowledgment, Grissom left for his appointment.

* * *

He sat in the waiting room of his physician's office. Thankfully he was the only one waiting there. Finally a nurse called his name. After going through the usual embarrassing rituals, she had him wait in an exam room.

Grissom fiddled with his fingers trying to ease his anxiety. The door opened.

"Gil, what brings you in today?"

"Is it not stated on the form?"

"Yes. Is it that hard to say?"

"I'm a little embarrassed I guess."

"Gil, many men younger than you have this kind of problem. Let's just do some routine tests and go from there."

Grissom inhaled deeply and released it slowly to settle his nerves.

"Just try to relax."

Grissom drove home feeling violated. It was just a simple series of tests, but he still despised going to the doctor.

Once home he sighed a big sigh of relief. He heard the shower running and decided just to go straight to bed. Grissom changed quickly and just before he lifted the covers, he noticed a small body lying in the middle of the bed.

The tiny brunette was unmistakable. Grissom turned and walked into the bathroom. Sara was still in the shower when he entered.

"Sara, why is the girl here and not with Child Services?"

She shut off the water and pulled back the shower curtain to expose her self to him.

"She was scared. I remember what it was like, and I couldn't put her through that."

He stared at her naked, wet body forgetting about why he had stormed in there in the first place.

"Did you have time to see the doctor today?"

He shook his head as if there was something blocking his sight.

"Ah, yeah." he continued to stare at her as she toweled off.

"And how did you make out?"

"Make out?"

"Your tests, not with me silly."

"Oh, I am above average in every category."

"So what do you think our problem is?"

"He says we are trying too hard, and we need to just slow down and let nature take it's course."

"So what do you have in mind?"

"Well I didn't have anything currently in mind, but if I did our bed is occupied."

"Gil, she's scared. I didn't know what else to do so I told off the Child Services lady and brought her here."

"Ecklie heard about your outburst with me at the scene earlier."

"I'm not surprised. What's he going to do with me now?"

"I'm supposed to decide on the punishment for your insubordination."

"And what have you decided?"

"I haven't."

She began to dress into her pajamas as he continued.

"The DA isn't going to charge Jason for murder."

"That's great. Then he can be with Kassie."

"Who?"

"Kassie, that's her name."

"Oh, anyway, he's too young to take care of them and they have no other family that he knows of."

"What are you saying Gil? That they will be put into a foster home?"

He nodded.

"Unacceptable."

"Sara." he warned.

"Don't Sara me, stop and think Grissom. Jason is a brilliant young man, even you saw that. His sister is still very young but old enough where she most likely won't be adopted. They will be separated and God knows what else. We can't let that happen to them. We just can't."

"Sara, there's nothing else we could do."

"Yes there is." she walked out of the bathroom and quickly dressed.

"Where are you going?"

"Can you keep an eye on her? I'll be back as soon as I can."

"Wait."

And then she was gone. When Sara had an idea in her head, she ran with it. Grissom shook his head and lay down on the bed next to Kassie's sleeping form. He was asleep within minutes.

* * *

Sara returned many hours later. The house was silent, so she concluded that he was still asleep. She peered into the bedroom and saw him lying on his side with Kassie curled up against his back. Sara quickly retrieved her camera and snapped a picture then shut the door.

She sat at the dinning room table and went over the papers she had brought back with her. As she began to read through them she felt him lean over her back.

"What's this?" Grissom asked.

"Have a seat."

Grissom sat down next to her.

"I have an idea. If the DA isn't going to press charges on Jason then he does what, probation? I don't want to see her or him get lost in the system."

"Sara, I think I know where you are going with this."

"Just hear me out." she interrupted. "We have been trying to have a baby ourselves for several months now. We can still keep trying, but you have to admit that when you saw Jason's room in that house, it was what you pictured your son's room to look like."

Grissom pursed his lips and nodded. She continued, "These are papers for both of them. I went down to the juvenile detention center and talked with Jason, then Child Services. We can take both until they are officially put up for adoption. Then make a decision. What do you think?"

"Sara, have you really, and I mean really thought this through?"

"Gil, I have never been thinking more clearly in my entire life."

"What about work? Our little secret will be out. That and with kids at home, you will have to work days. Can you handle that?"

"I want to do this Grissom. Not for me, but for them. What do you say?"

He growled under his breath, but she heard it and smiled at him. Sara stood to move into his lap. She mouthed 'thank you' to him before she kissed him.

"Oh, I've decided what to do about you."

"Hun?"

"I'm suspending you for a week. That will give you time to do this." he waved his arm around in the air.

TBC

I hope you are enjoying this story. I decided to take a differnet route with Grissom and Sara getting pregnant. In many cases I read that the poor child was an accident, and others they planned it. But I decided to make them a statistic, and want a baby, but are having problems. I don't know why, these things come to me while I'm listening to my MP3 player while riding horses. This story came form the Areosmith song "Janie's Got a Gun" but I changed it up a little. Just for your information in case you were wondering. Please review and let me know what you think so far.


	3. Chapter 3

Thanks for the many reviews, they have been wonderful. And again, I must give credits to my beta's Just Thinking, GSfanatic, and Elton John also know as thegreatbluespoon. Your secrets out now Jess.

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Teens & Tribulations

Chapter 3

Grissom went through his normal evening ritual that he did every day before he would head out to the lab. After showering, the smell of food entering his sinuses drew him into the kitchen. Sara was placing several items on the table, while Kassie was placing the plates and silverware.

"Are you hungry?"

Sara's question brought him out of his trance.

"Hun?"

"I asked if you were hungry."

"Yes, I am."

He walked in and sat down next to Kassie. She inched her chair away from him to scoot closer to Sara.

"Kassie, it's ok. This is Gil."

Grissom held out his hand.

"Hi, Kassie."

She placed her small hand into his larger one. Grissom was surprised at her light touch and smiled and gently shook her hand. Sara dished out some food for Kassie. Grissom and Sara ate and talked about work. Kassie finished her dinner before either of them.

"Can I have some more?" her tiny voice squeaked out.

"Sure." and Sara filled her plate again.

Grissom was amazed that such a tiny body could hold so much food.

When they were done he helped Sara clean up while Kassie watched TV.

"I don't think she was properly taken care of. At least not by Jason's father."

Grissom didn't respond.

"What can we do for Jason?"

He checked his watch. "Sara, we need to talk about this more, but I have to get to the lab. Tell you what, give me a chance to hand out assignments, and then come by and we'll talk." He kissed her and headed for the door, "I'll see you later."

He left and Sara joined Kassie in the living room. She wasn't surprised that the little girl had taken to her since she resembled their aunt. It had been over two years since Debbie Marlin was murdered, and she wondered if Kassie remembered, or if she had ever met Debbie.

Grissom headed to the break room to pass out that evening's cases, and as expected he was bombarded with the question of, 'Where is Sara?'

"She's on suspension. End of subject. Now, for the task at hand-"

"Hey Sara," Greg interrupted.

Grissom turned to see Sara leading Kassie into the room and eventually taking their seats on the couch. He also noticed that she was wearing her ring.

It didn't take long for Catherine to see it either. "Nice rock."

Everyone else in the room then looked at her left hand.

"Thanks."

"So, what did you do, pull a Warrick on us?" Catherine said still sore over what Warrick did last year.

Warrick shot her a surprising look.

"I guess you could say that, but I'm just engaged."

Catherine looked to Grissom. Her eyes silently told him he waited around too long.

"So, who's the lucky man?" Nick asked.

"Yeah, do we know him?" Greg butted in.

"Actually you do."

Now every one was looking at Grissom.

"What?"

Sara stood and moved to him as they all watched.

"Don't you dare Sara Sidle." Grissom threatened.

Sara stopped dead in her tracks at the seriousness in his voice.

"Let's take this discussion to my office, shall we?"

"What's wrong with here?" But Catherine's question went unanswered. Grissom had already left.

They all stood and headed for his office. Sara took Kassie by the hand and followed everyone. She was the last to enter. Sara sat Kassie down on the couch and moved to stand beside Grissom.

"Think of this as one of my seminars, ask your questions one at a time, and I will answer them to the best of my ability."

Catherine was quick to jump on that one. "Are you and Sara seeing each other?"

Grissom looked to Sara and she answered, "Yes."

"Since when? And why didn't you tell us?" Catherine blurted out.

"Look, you all know that I keep my personal life very private, and Sara does too. We just decided that we would try this out and see what transpired before telling everyone. I know it's going to make things complicated around here for a while."

"Why?" Catherine asked.

She had that cocky tone in her voice and Grissom knew only one way to change it. He looked at Sara for approval to explain the situation. At her nod he spoke, "For starters, I can't be her supervisor if we are in a relationship."

"Yes, you can." Catherine interrupted again.

"Let me finish,..." He sighed, signaling to everyone that what he was about to reveal was very personal,... " We're trying for a baby." His eyes widened awaiting the reaction from the people he thought of as 'family'.

The silence hung in the air for some time, but it was eventually broken by Catherine. She was excited about the whole idea, and to Grissom's surprise, she congratulated Sara first. The guys all stood to give Grissom a congratulatory pat on the back.

Greg decided to ask a question. "Who's the kid?"

Sara answered, "This is Kassie, she's staying with us until this case with her brother is resolved. Don't worry, Child Services knows that we have her."

The group nodded at once, not wanting to push the subject anymore. Grissom cleared his throat and sent them on their way. Sara sat down in front of his desk, and Grissom placed himself behind it to distance himself from her. He knew this conversation could get ugly.

"Sara, I know why you have taken Kassie under your wing, you have sympathy for her. You don't want to see her go through what you did." He winced when he saw Sara's relaxed expression change into a pissed off Sara Sidle.

"You have no idea what I went though Grissom." Lately she only called him Grissom at work or when she was mad at him. "I was mad at my mother for killing my father, not because of the act itself, but because of what the final result was. And let me tell you it's no life for a child to be jumping from home to home."

"Well you turned out fine."

"Yeah, I'm a statistic. One in a hundred. She doesn't deserve that life." Sara pointed at Kassie who had laid down and was sound asleep. She took a deep breath to curb her anger, "Listen, we both want a family, and if it's not in the cards for us to have children of our own, then what?"

Grissom let out a breath and slowly shook his head.

"We would probably adopt, right? So, why not now?"

"What you are asking is a lot Sara. We need to think about all of the changes that are going to happen right away."

"Just think it over, that's all I ask. If not for me, then for them."

Grissom pursed his lips, "I'll think about it."

Sara smiled and moved to give him a quick peck on the cheek. She then roused Kassie and took her home. Grissom remained in his office and made some more phone calls. He finished and placed his head on his hands. Like Sara, he too did not want to see either of the kids fall victim to 'the system'.

Just as he was thinking about leaving, the DA entered his office. "Gil, can I have a word?"

Grissom motioned to the chairs in front of his desk.

"We are planning on a plea bargain for Jason. I have arranged a hearing for him in a few days."

"Where is he going to stay?" Grissom asked.

"For now in juvenile detention, then Child Services will place him in a foster home. But you won't need to be presenting any evidence at the hearing, we have it all sorted out so that whatever punishment he gets, it won't follow him into adulthood." He checked his watch. "Damn, I have to get home. Thanks Gil."

The DA scurried out just as fast as he had entered. Grissom sat and thought about Sara's rants from just a short time ago. He picked up the phone and began making the necessary calls. Once he had all the information he needed, Grissom gathered his belongings and headed to the juvenile detention center.

He stood impatiently as he watched Jason be run through the paperwork and handed back his belongings.

"Hi Jason."

"Hello."

Grissom stood uneasy. He didn't know where to start. But Jason did. "Where's my sister?" He asked.

"For the moment she is staying at my place. You are more than welcome also, unless you have somewhere else you can go?"

Jason shook his head.

"I think you might find it more interesting with me anyway."

Grissom put his hand on the young man's shoulders and led him to his vehicle. On the way home Jason sat silently looking out the window. Grissom had so many questions he wanted to ask but decided to leave it alone for now.

Once home, Jason slowly followed him to the front steps where Grissom turned to face him.

"Jason, I want you to be clear on several things, first, I live with my fiancé, remember, the one who looks like your aunt?"

He nodded.

"And second, for now this is temporary, if you do not wish to stay then Child Services can place you in a foster home."

"What about Kassie?"

"I don't think I could convince Sara to let her go." Grissom gave a slight shake of his head as he remembered his conversation earlier that evening with Sara.

"What about your kids?"

Grissom smiled. "I don't have any kids. My work consumed my whole life, until I met Sara."

Jason smiled and nodded.

Grissom opened the door to let him in. They both could smell breakfast cooking as the stepped into the entryway. He led Jason into the kitchen.

"Look who I found." the statement was directed more to Kassie.

She squealed and ran to Jason who quickly swept her up into his arms squeezing her tightly against his body. Grissom moved over to give Sara her good morning kiss. Once Jason released his grip on Kassie, her mouth began to move a mile a minute. She was telling him about all the things that her and Sara had done in the last day.

Grissom looked at Sara. "I thought you said she barely spoke a word?"

"She did. I guess she's just letting it all out right now. Catching up."

She served their breakfast and they all sat down to eat together.

"Wow." Jason stated.

"What?" Sara asked.

"Do you know how long it has been since we have had a real cooked meal that everyone sat down to eat together?"

Sara and Grissom looked at each other. Their hearts tugged for both of these two children whose lives have so obviously been difficult.

After they all finished eating, Kassie helped Sara clean off the table.

"Jason, come with me. I want to show you something." Grissom instructed.

Sara smiled. She knew exactly where he was taking the boy. Grissom led him down to the basement. It was dark when they entered, but with the flip of a switch the many black lights came to life highlighting the many terrariums that surrounded the edge of the main room.

Grissom could see the words forming at Jason's mouth, but they came without sound as he moved around taking in the many different species of live insects. He smiled as he watched Jason carefully observe each species with care and fascination.

"Do you like bugs Jason?"

He just nodded and kept his eyes focused on the tarantula.

"Would you like to hold him?"

"Are you serious?"

Grissom moved over and gently picked up the hairy spider.

"Just keep your hands like a moving surface as he walks."

The spider moved from Grissom's large hands to Jason's smaller ones. Grissom watched as Jason carefully handled the tarantula.

"Can I take him to show my sister?"

"Sorry, Sara has this rule about insects and spiders out of their cages in the house."

Jason then just as carefully as Grissom, placed the spider back in his cage, and continued to look around. He noticed the experiment boards.

"What are you, some kind of scientist?"

"Yes, actually I have my PhD in entomology. I like bugs."

"I like them too, but I'm more into chemistry."

"I could tell by all of the microscopes you had in your room at home."

Jason hung his head as Grissom realized his words struck a chord with the young man.

"Home. Where is home for us now?"

Grissom moved closer placing a reassuring hand on Jason's shoulder.

"Don't worry, we'll think of something."

They walked back up the stairs and Grissom locked the door behind him. Jason went ahead to join Sara and his sister in the living room, and Grissom followed.

"I'm going to take a shower. Why don't you show them around, then we can take the truck over to collect some of their things."

"Sure."

Sara stood and began to show Jason and Kassie around where they would be staying for the time being.

TBC

I hope there are people out there that are still reading. My life has been like a roller coaster lately. I will update when I can, please bear with me.


	4. Chapter 4

Thanks again to those who have reviewed. I enjoy reading your thoughts and comments, and to my beta's Just Thinking, GSfanatic, and the ever so arny, thegreatbluespoon.

* * *

Teens & Tribulations

Chapter 4

It took them all afternoon to organize Jason and Kassie's belongings. They only took home what they would immediately need. Jason helped Grissom unload and carry the boxes into his and Kassie's rooms. Sara helped Kassie unpack and put her things away.

Grissom decided that it was just a coincidence that he and Sara had just purchased their new home a month ago. The house was fairly large, but didn't cost them an arm and a leg. It allowed for room for the children they were planning on having, yet also for them to each have a private area. There were 2 bedrooms and one bath upstairs, and one master bedroom and two baths down stairs. Sara claimed the den for her private area, while Grissom's bugs occupied the finished basement. There was one small room that neither of them had decided on what to do with. For now it was a storage room.

Sara was tired and decided to order a pizza for dinner. Both Jason and Kassie voiced their enthusiasm over the idea. Grissom was amazed at how both of the children had taken to such a large change in stride. He was even shocked at himself, because he was enjoying the idea of having the two of them around. As for Sara, well her maternal instincts went into orbit the instant Kassie was in her arms that first night.

They all chatted over small stuff while they devoured the pizzas.

"Gil, do you have to go to the lab tonight? Please say no, you have been up all day." Sara asked.

"No, it's my night off." Just as he finished his sentence the phone rang.

Sara looked at him and he pursed his lips as his picked up his cell phone.

"Grissom."

"Yes...Ok..." he checked his watch, "...Give me half an hour."

He shut his phone as Sara shook her head and headed to their bedroom.

"Jason, would you clean this up for me?"

"Sure."

"Thanks. Excuse me."

He followed to where Sara had retreated. "Honey,..."

"Gil, put your foot down. It's your night off for crying out loud. You have been up all day and the night before working. You haven't slept in 24 hours."

"I'm just going to collect some insects off a DB found in the woods. That's all, then I'm coming right back home. I promise."

Sara chewed on his promise for a minute. "Fine."

He walked up and gently placed a kiss on her forehead.

"I'll be back as soon as I can."

Grissom left and Sara returned to help Jason and Kassie finish cleaning up.

Later that night Grissom quietly slipped into the house. He entered the security code on the pad inside the door, and made his way through the darkness to his bedroom. He stripped down to his boxers and slid under the covers to curl up against Sara's warm back. In an instant he realized she was naked under the sheets. Grissom slowly placed little kisses along the back of her shoulder blades, leaving a trail of moisture as he made his way up to the side of her neck. He sucked in her earlobe as Sara moaned and began to roll over.

"I'm still mad at you." her voice was a sleepy whisper.

"I know, can I make it up to you?"

"Mmm. What did you have in mind?"

She rolled over onto her back as Grissom pulled the sheet down to expose her breasts. Grissom put his mouth to use as Sara's hands roamed over his back as he worked.

"This is a good start. But it's going to take more than this to get me to forgive you."

Grissom's mouth moved to her neck. He knew it was her most vulnerable spot. She moaned loudly as he continued his manipulations over her skin. In the process she helped him shed his boxers and he positioned himself between her legs.

"I need to raise my hips, remember?"

"Don't think about it, remember?" He smirked at her.

And then he slowly made love to her. The thought of conceiving a baby was, for the moment, lost in their passion.

Sara woke the next morning in Grissom's strong grip. She carefully eased out of his grip, she knew he was exhausted and tried not to disturb him. After putting on her robe, she made her way to the kitchen.

Jason and Kassie were already up and making breakfast.

"What's this?"

"We decided to make you guys breakfast to show our appreciation for opening your home to us."

"Jason, that's sweet but you don't have to."

"It's nothing. Where is Gil?"

"He got home late. So let's be quiet so he can get some rest."

Kassie smiled and nodded. She set the table while Jason finished preparing breakfast. The three of them ate and tried to keep their voices down.

"What's that noise?" Jason asked.

"What noise?"

"I hear a weird noise. Can't you hear it?"

Sara concentrated.

"It's Gil's phone. Find it."

Jason and Sara jumped from the table frantically looking for the concealed phone. Jason found it first and answered it.

"Dr. Grissom's phone...Who is this?...I'm sorry, but I'm not entitled to release that information." Sara laughed at Jason's response. "May I ask who you are?"

"This is Catherine Willows. Why are you answering Gil's phone?"

"Cause he's sleeping."

Sara walked up and took the phone from him. "Hello."

"Sara, who was that?"

"Jason. Long story. What can I do for you?"

"Well I wanted to know if Gil was coming to work tonight. I need to go with Lindsey on some kind of overnight trip."

"Yes, he'll be there. He's sleeping right now, but I'll let him know."

"Thanks Sara. See you later."

She hung up and shook her head at Jason.

"What was that? 'I'm not entitled to release that information.'"

"I thought it was an educated response. Makes me sound smart." He stood tall and puffed his chest.

"You are smart."

They all turned to see Grissom standing in the kitchen.

"Why don't you eat then go back to bed Gil?"

He shook his head.

"Can't, I have to take Jason to meet with the DA this morning."

"Fine." her voice carried the same tone as it did the night before.

He didn't respond, but retreated back to their room to change clothes. Sara joined him several minutes later. She refused to look or even speak to him.

"Sara, why don't you bring Kassie along? Then we can plead our case to Child Services about keeping the kids."

She looked up and her face was full of hope. "Thank you."

They spent longer than expected with the DA. Sara insisted that they go over the forms approving of the fact that they were taking care of the kids. The four were heading out when Kassie tugged at Grissom's pant leg. He looked down and she extended her arms up towards him.

Grissom smiled and bent down to pick her up. She laid her head on his shoulders and quickly fell asleep. When they finally made it home, Grissom carried Kassie to her room and laid her down. He made his way down stairs to inform Sara that he was going to try and rest before shift.

Sara was busy in the kitchen when she saw Jason reading over the forms they had brought home. She sat down next to him.

"Can I help you with something?"

"Yeah, I guess I'm not understanding this."

"Well, in a nutshell, it just says that you are on probation for 4 years. Any kind of trouble you get into, and they will lock you up. You can't get your drivers license until you are 18, but once you turn 21, it's all erased from your record."

"What about this stuff, with me and Kassie?"

"Now that just informs Child Services that you guys are under our care, like a foster home for a few weeks."

"And after those weeks pass?"

"The two of you will be put up for adoption."

"And we have to leave."

Sara didn't answer. She looked back down at the papers not wanting to reveal the delicate situation.

"I don't want to leave. Kassie doesn't either. I have never seen her this happy." The tears began to well in his eyes as he stood suddenly and ran up the stairs to his bed room.

Sara sighed, reorganized the papers, and filed them away. She went about cleaning up in the living room. Kassie had coloring books scattered across the coffee table. As she was stacking them in a neat pile when a torn out page fell to the ground. Sara picked it up, and her heart broke as she looked at it. The picture was of a family, a mom, dad, brother, sister, and a dog. Kassie had colored it to the best of her ability, but it was what the little girl had added that made her chest ache. On the picture of the dad, Kassie had attempted to draw a bug on his shoulder, she gave the mom dark hair like she had, and drew pants on her over the initial dress that was on the picture. Over each person's head was a letter. Sara knew she couldn't spell, but it was obvious that Jason had helped her. The letters were; G,S,J,K. Sara knew what they stood for, and now she was on a mission to convince Grissom to adopt these kids.

TBC

Hope you are enjoying this so far. Please leave a comment or a suggestion.


	5. Chapter 5

Again thanks for the many reviews, keep them coming. And thanks to my beta's, Just Thinking for the valuable advice, and GSfanatic for your wonderful thoughts and ideas. And Jess, my precious asshat.

* * *

Teens & Tribulations

Chapter 5

After a little straightening up around the house, Sara decided to wake Grissom so he could get ready for work. She crawled on the bed next to him.

"Gil, wake up."

Grissom made a sound that indicated he wasn't ready to get up.

"Come on. If you don't get up now you'll miss dinner and be late."

Again the noise came from under the covers.

"Look at what Kassie colored."

"It's neat."

"You're not even looking. Here."

She climbed over his back and pushed the paper in his face.

"Oh, your glasses."

Sara grabbed his glasses off the night stand and attempted to put them on his face.

"What's the big deal about this picture Sara?"

He put on his glasses and looked at it, and was speechless.

"Jason, told me he doesn't want to leave, and that he's never seen Kassie happier than she has been these past few days."

"Sara, I understand where you are coming from, but..."

"But what?"

"If you get pregnant and we have these two already, you won't be able to work nights anymore. Heck even with these two working nights wouldn't be possible."

"Why, Catherine does it."

"Lindsey goes to school all day and Catherine's mother lives with them. That's a big difference."

"Fine, I'll cross that bridge when I get there."

"Sounds like you're all ready there."

"I'll think of something. Get up." She elbowed him then climbed out of bed and headed into the kitchen to make dinner.

Sara proudly displayed Kassie's picture on the refrigerator. While her casserole was in the oven she went upstairs to get Jason and Kassie.

"Jason," she said knocking on his bedroom door.

He opened it slowly.

"Dinner's almost ready."

"Thanks."

She moved to Kassie's room and opened the door. She was still asleep, but Sara decided to wake her.

There was noticeable tension as they ate dinner. Little Kassie was the only one oblivious to it.

"Can I get a dog?"

"No!" Grissom barked out.

"Grissom!"

He looked at Sara then back to Kassie who's small brown eyes were already filled with tears.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like that."

She climbed out of her chair and ran upstairs crying.

"Gil, you didn't have to be so stern with her."

Grissom's hand came down hard on the table.

"This is what I was talking about Sara. Things are going to change around here. And you know how well I handle change."

"Yeah, I do. You don't handle change. You just fight your way through it making everyone around you miserable."

Sara stood and ran upstairs after Kassie. Grissom sat back in his chair and watched Jason slowly continue to eat his food.

"I'm sorry Jason. I didn't mean to yell at her. This is all new to both of us."

"It's okay. If you don't want us around just say so, at least to me. I can handle the truth very well."

"Jason.." Grissom sighed, "... it's not that I don't want you guys around, it's just that Sara and I both work nights. We sleep all day, and even sometimes work all day. We handle a lot of bad things on our job, but we try not to bring them home."

"I'm old enough to look after Kassie, but I understand where you are coming from."

"What about school? She should be starting soon, and you, well you need to be learning something better than what they teach at the public schools around here."

Jason just smiled as Grissom excused himself, stood, and headed up the stairs. He inched open the door to Kassie's room and saw Sara holding her on the bed soothing away her tears. He approached them and kneeled in front of Kassie.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to respond like that." He kept his voice low and soothing.

She kept her face buried in Sara.

"Kassie, maybe we can talk about some kind of pet. Maybe a fish, or a hamster?"

She turned her face to look at him.

"Just to start with, then when you're older we can talk about a dog. How does that sound?"

Kassie sat up and looked at Grissom. She made the motion like she wanted a reassuring hug from him, but she hesitated.

"It's alright." Sara spoke as she placed a hand on Grissom's shoulder.

Kassie slowly moved into his arms, and he squeezed her gently. "I'm sorry Kassie, I really am."

He looked up at Sara while soothing Kassie against his chest. She gave him one of her classic hundred watt smiles.

Grissom pushed Kassie back, "All better now?"

She nodded her head.

"Good. I have to get going. I'll see you two in the morning."

He kissed Kassie on her forehead and Sara on her lips before going downstairs.

"Hey, I'm off to the lab. You're the man of the house while I'm gone."

"Hey Gil, can I come with you some time? Just to the lab I mean." Jason asked excitedly.

"Let me think about it."

"Sweet."

Grissom raised an eyebrow at the teenager's response, and then headed out the door.

As expected, the way things went at home set the standard for the night to come, nothing went right.

He went solo into the field, and before he got to the body, he could smell that his night just got worse. Detective O'Riley greeted him from a safe distance.

"Hikers found the fridge and opened it out of curiosity. The lid has been closed ever since. We collected their prints for you since they said they touched it."

"Thanks."

Grissom approached the old icebox. After putting on his gloves he took a deep breath and held it. He pulled the door open to reveal the decomposing body. Luckily the fridge was on its back so all of the 'juice' was contained. He took some pictures and resealed the lid. He then snapped pictures around the area and headed back.

Grissom's head slammed hard against his locker as Catherine walked in.

"Man you stink. Decomp?"

"Yes, and I don't have a change of clothes here."

"Well why don't you just go home and change then come back?"

Grissom checked his watch. "I think I'll just go home."

He walked out. Catherine could tell that something other than a little decomp was irritating him.

Grissom pulled into the driveway and checked his watch. Four a.m. He sat back deep into the seat of the Denali and felt that all too familiar pain seep up into his temples. Grissom went inside, grabbed the bag of lemons from the refrigerator, and headed for the shower.

He was as quiet as possible, for Sara and himself. When he was through he took refuge in his basement. The lights were on and for a second he wondered if someone had been down there, but then he remembered that the lights were on timers. Grissom went to the small back room that held his desk and a couch. He turned on some soft cello music and laid down hoping to ease away his migraine before it could truly rear its ugly head.

Sara woke and checked her bed side clock. Seven thirty and no sign of Gil. As she walked into the bathroom the sign she was looking for was there. Clothes reeking of decomp lay on the floor, and the waste basket was full of used lemons. She smiled, knowing him he was sleeping in the basement. After cleaning up the bathroom, Sara went to prepare breakfast, and once again, Jason had beat her to it.

"Good morning Jason. Where's Kassie?"

"She's still getting dressed. I hope you don't mind me cooking, I enjoy making breakfast."

"By all means, go right ahead."

Kassie bounded down the stairs and her small nose picked up the pungent odor that Grissom trailed through the house. "Something stinks."

Sara and Jason smiled, but Sara answered her. "Gil stinks from work. I bet he's sleeping in the basement."

"I'll get him." Jason was way too excited and Sara concluded that he just wanted to see all the 'stuff' Grissom had down there.

Jason crept down the stairs and followed the sound of the music. He slowly opened the door and could barely make out Grissom's form in the dark. Jason reached for the light switch, but was halted by his voice. "Leave it off."

Jason slowly entered. "Are you alright?"

"I have a migraine. A bad one. Do me a favor, get my pills from Sara."

"Sure, I'll be right back."

Jason crept out of the room but once he was to the stairs he let his legs go as fast as they could carry him.

"Gil has a migraine, he said something about pills?"

"Oh no." Sara stood and went to retrieve the bottle of Relpax. As she suspected there was only one left. "He forgot to pick up his prescription. Take this to him and I'll have to go and get it." She handed Jason the pill and a bottle of water. "Can you keep an eye on your sister till I get back?"

"Not a problem."

"Thanks, I'll be back shortly." Sara went to quickly change clothes then headed out.

Jason returned to the basement, staying as quiet as possible. He kneeled next to Grissom.

"Here. Sara said this is all that's left, but she went to go get more."

Grissom took the pill and followed it with the water.

"One pill is not going to help this one."

"Sara said she would be back as soon as possible." Jason looked at Grissom with great concern as he lay before him. "Do you need anything else?"

"No Jason, I'm fine, thank you."

"I'll be upstairs if you need me."

Jason left Grissom to his thoughts. But his thoughts evaded him as more and more pain crept in. It was the longest thirty minutes of his life as he waited. One pill just wasn't enough.

She was quiet and he never heard her enter. Sara kneeled next to him. "How are you feeling?"

Her whisper was like a shouting child to his sensitive ears, and he winced as she spoke.

"Am I talking too loud?" Her voice was nearly inaudible to herself, but by the way Grissom reacted, she knew this one had gotten out of hand.

Sara took his hand and he opened his eyes just enough to see her. By her look he knew he must look like hell, but he felt even worse. Grissom never attempted to sit up as Sara took out the bottle of Relpax. She moved to place two pills into his mouth but he took them and administered them him self. Grissom took just enough water to swallow them, and again closed his eyes. Sara kissed the back of his hand and let him be.

When she returned upstairs Jason and Kassie were serving their breakfast.

"How's he doing?" Jason asked.

"Not good."

"How long does it take for that stuff to work?" He pointed to the pill bottle.

"A few hours, but with a migraine like this, who knows."

They ate the pancakes that Jason had prepared. When they finished Sara looked at Kassie and smiled. "Kassie you need a bath, look at you."

Jason looked at his sister. She had somehow gotten pancake batter in her hair while they were making breakfast. Sara took her hand and led her upstairs, while Jason began washing the dishes. She helped Kassie clean up and get dressed. They both went back down stairs, and Kassie went straight to her coloring books. Sara looked at Jason who was sitting on the couch reading a book she recognized well. It was one of the many that Grissom had co-authored about entomology.

Sara went to the den and pulled out the paper work for the adoption application for Jason and Kassie. As she was filling it out, she came to a few bumps in the proverbial road. One was her last name. Sure she and Grissom were engaged, but her last name was still Sidle. How would it look to the person reviewing the application to see the parents having different last names? She put Sara Grissom on the form. The other bump came on the question about expecting other children. This one was tough, but she responded to the best of her ability, and finished the rest. She signed the bottom pausing to wonder if Grissom would sign it or if she would have to forge his signature.

Sara left the papers like that for now. She was thinking about Jason and Kassie, and how her and Grissom's lives would be changed. Sara placed a hand over her stomach and said to herself. "I guess this is good practice." She walked into the living room.

Jason asked, "How's Gil doing?"

Her eyes widened, she had completely forgot about Grissom. Sara headed downstairs to check on him.

She slowly opened the door and noticed his breathing was even and relaxed. Finally he was in peace. Just before she closed the door, she heard him speak.

"Sara. Do you need something?"

She entered and kneeled next to him. "No, I was just checking on you. How do you feel?"

"Better, I could even eat."

"I'll bring you something after I feed the kids."

She stood and left him in peace.

TBC

Give me your thoughts, I won't be offended. I love reviews.


	6. Chapter 6

Thanks for the generous reviews and for those who are reading but choose not to review, thanks for reading. Thanks to my beta's Just Thinking, GSfanatic. If this chapter looks weird to you, I made an executive dicision and the next one will explain it. And to thegreatbluespoon, a round of screwdrivers from Madame Tipsy, this is the start of our intervention.

* * *

Teens & Tribulations

Chapter 6

Sara walked into the living room and picked up the phone.

"Catherine, it's Sara. Listen, Gil's been suffering from a bad migraine all day. I know I'm suspended, but if you need help call me."

She left her message and hung up. Jason helped with the preparation of the evening meal. They sat down to eat together and Sara decided now was time.

"Are you two happy here with Gil and myself?"

They could only nod a yes because their mouths were full of food.

Sara smiled. "Well I suspect that in several days, you will be officially put up for adoption. You won't have to leave here, but that means that other families could come and take you to their homes."

Kassie shook her head, "I want you to be my momma."

Sara's eyes filled with tears as she looked at Jason. "I want to stay here too."

She composed her self and they finished dinner. Sara fixed a plate for Grissom and took it down to him.

He was sitting up on the couch when she walked in. "Gil, we need to talk."

Grissom sighed, "Now's not the time Sara."

She handed him the plate. "Yes, it is. Jason wants to stay here and live with us, Kassie she told me..." She stopped as the tears filled her eyes once again.

"What Sara? She told you what?"

"...That she wants me to be her 'momma."

Grissom's hand stopped half way to his mouth as he looked at Sara. He set his plate down and leaned forward to take Sara's hands in his.

"Sara, we are not ready for this much responsibility. We are not married yet, hell, we don't even know when we are going to get married. I'm just a little unsure about the whole deal that's all."

"So you don't want to adopt them?"

"That's not what I'm saying. Why do you want to move so fast with this whole process?"

Sara sighed, "I don't know. I guess it's because I want them to be assured that they have a home here with us."

Grissom looked into her eyes. "Then let's compromise." Sara rolled her eyes. "Don't roll your eyes at me until you hear my idea. They have been here what, two days, so let's say they are put up for adoption at the end of the week. What are the odds that someone would come in and swoop them up right away?" He gave her a second to think about it. "So let's say they are here for two weeks and no one has adopted them. We have had enough time together to see where this will lead. Then we'll make a decision. Fair enough?"

"Do I have a choice?"

"There is always a choice, but when someone offers compromise, it's best to go with it."

She smiled, "Who said that?"

"Grissom." he smiled back.

"Fine we'll do it your way and see what happens. Now eat." She stood to leave and stopped in the doorway, "Oh, I called Catherine and told her you wouldn't be in tonight."

He nodded to her with a mouth full of food.

The rest of the week went by without a hitch. It was Sunday night and Sara was back on duty, the first real test.

"I'll see you at the lab." Grissom kissed Sara and headed out.

She stayed behind giving Jason a list of numbers to call. "Just start at the top with Gil and work your way down. The rest of the names on the list are our co-workers. Don't hesitate to call."

"We'll be fine. I've done this before." he responded.

Sara smiled and headed out herself. She walked into the break room and noticed that Ecklie was in there getting coffee. Everyone was silent as they suspected the reason he was snooping. Sara sat down and looked at Catherine, who was pointing at her own hand. Sara looked down at her hand and realized she still had her engagement ring on. She placed her hands under the table and took off the ring.

Just when the tension was about to break, their savior walked in. "Why's everyone so... Conrad, to what do we own your unwanted presence tonight?"

"Ha ha, funny Gil." Ecklie said dryly. "I've been waiting for you actually."

"Well I've been in my office for the last half hour, why didn't you go there?"

"Because what I have to say involves everyone. There is a mandatory forensic seminar in Denver and I have made the reservations for your people for you. Just incase you happen to forget. Stokes and Brown will go first, Willows and Sidle you will follow, Sanders and you will go last. Each pair will be gone for four days. The first pair leaves in the morning, the tickets are in the file. It's mandatory. Catherine while Gil is gone you will be acting supervisor."

Everyone's mouth was hanging agape. "Look, I know what you are trying to do Conrad..." Grissom spoke but was interrupted.

"Look Gil' I'm not trying to do anything. Here's the file." Ecklie slapped the file against Grissom's chest. "Good night."

Grissom pursed his lips and the anger was written clearly on his face. Nobody dared to speak, but they all looked to Sara to be the one to break the ice. She noticed the looks she was getting and cleared her throat.

"Just ignore him. Let's just..."

"Ignore him. Like hell, he's constantly doing this on purpose to piss me off!"

"And it's working."

Grissom straightened up and proceeded with handing out the evenings assignments, then stormed back to his office. Sara followed.

"Gil..."

"Don't you have a scene to go to?"

"Can it for one second will you?" Grissom sat stunned at her bluntness. "Why are you so stressed?"

Grissom sat back into his chair and shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know, I guess I'm frustrated over a lot of things."

"Well you need to get un-frustrated." and with that she walked out.

Grissom took several deep breathes to calm his anxiety. He made an attempt to do get through the stacks of files on his desk. After several hours he was about to give up when the phone on his desk rang.

"Grissom...where are you...I'll be right there." He hung up and headed out the door.

Grissom arrived at the crime scene and began searching for Catherine.

"Cath."

"We're over her Gil!" he looked to see her waving to get his attention.

He quickly moved over to her. "What happened?"

"She says it's just cramps. I've had some bad ones myself, but nothing like what she's going through." Catherine pointed over to Sara who was sitting on the ground with her knees pulled to her chest.

Grissom moved over to kneel next to her.

"I'll be fine." She said.

"You don't look fine. What happened?"

"First, I'm not pregnant. I started this morning. But when I bent over to collect some evidence, this sudden cramp hit me hard."

Grissom gave her a sympathetic look. "Do you need to take the rest of the night off?"

She shook her head. "I'll be fine once it passes."

Catherine went back to processing while Grissom stayed with Sara. When she tried to stand up he helped her. She stayed doubled over, and Grissom rubbed his hand over her back in soothing circles. Once she stood up straight, Grissom saw the blood rush from her face as she doubled back over in pain.

"Catherine!" Grissom yelled as he helped Sara sit back down.

"What is it?" Catherine asked.

"Surely this isn't normal."

"No, it's not."

"I'm fine." Sara said through her gritted teeth.

Catherine kneeled next to her. "Sara I've never heard of menstrual cramps being this bad, something is wrong."

Grissom looked at Catherine then shot a worried look back to Sara who was trying to curb the pain by wrapping her arms around her abdomen.

"Come on, I'm taking you to the hospital." Grissom said as he wrapped his arms around her and lifted her up and carried her to his Denali.

Catherine opened the door and he placed her in the passenger seat. He shut the door and headed around the front as he heard Catherine's voice call out to him.

"Keep me posted."

Grissom climbed in and headed to Desert Palms. He checked Sara in and waited impatiently in the waiting room.

"Mr. Grissom?"

He stepped towards the nurse. "Yes."

"You can see your wife now." She led him down the hall.

Grissom didn't bother to correct her for calling Sara his wife, but when he saw her pale and lying in the hospital bed, he knew he needed to change that title, fast. He approached her and sat in a chair next to her bed and took her hand. She opened her eyes at his touch.

"Morphine. I feel fine now."

Grissom couldn't help but smile. "Do they know what caused the cramps yet?"

"She's gonna come back in a little bit, I guess when I'm more lucid."

He sat with her in the silence observing her facial expressions. It was a relief to know that she wasn't in any pain for the moment, but what caused it in the first place kept him on edge.

The door opened an hour later. "Okay, Sara I have your test results."

Sara opened her eyes and Grissom sat up straighter in the chair to listen to what the doctor was about to reveal.

"You have PID. Pelvic Inflammatory Disease, that's what caused your cramps. I think we caught it early enough to prevent any major reproductive damage."

Grissom spoke up. "What is it exactly?"

"It's bacterial infection of the uterus. In many cases it can go for sometime before it's caught. And if not treated as soon as the symptoms start, it can cause many reproductive problems, even sterilization. I see on your records that you had a series of fertility tests run a little over a week ago?"

Sara nodded. "Why didn't they catch it then?"

"It's not easy to catch with no symptoms present. I'm going to start you on some heavy antibiotics. When they are done running, you can go home. I'll give you a prescription for some oral antibiotics. I assume that with the fertility tests you two are trying to conceive?" Grissom and Sara nodded. "Mr. Grissom, you will also need to take antibiotics. It's just a precaution. No sex for at least two weeks, and I want you to come back in several days for a check up to make sure the antibiotics are working."

"Thank you." Grissom said politely as the doctor left the room.

Soon after a nurse came in and hooked up the IV bag that contained the antibiotics. Grissom watched Sara as she continued to linger on the effects of the morphine. He checked his watch when he noticed the sun coming up, and thought he was seeing things. It read seven already. Grissom took out his phone and informed Catherine what caused Sara's unexpected cramping. After hanging up he took up her hand again. He sat there for some time when his cell rang. Grissom gave a confused look as he recognized the number to be from his home, then it hit him.

"Jason?"

"Yeah, I didn't know when you guys would be home. I was going to make breakfast."

"Go ahead and fix something for you and Kassie. We'll be home as soon as we can."

"Ok. Bye."

"Bye." Grissom hung up and looked at Sara. She was still in la-la land from the pain killers.

Grissom pulled into the garage and turned off the engine. He looked over at Sara, she was asleep. The door leading into the house opened and Jason walked out as Grissom exited the Denali.

"Jason, where's Kassie?"

"In the living room coloring, why?"

"Sara's not feeling well and I need to take her to bed. I don't want to scare Kassie when I carry her by."

"Say no more." And Jason headed back into the house.

Grissom stepped around the Denali and scooped Sara into his arms. When he heard Jason taking Kassie upstairs, he proceeded to head to their bedroom. He laid Sara on the bed and covered her up. After laying a delicate kiss on her forehead he headed upstairs to explain the situation with the kids.

He knocked on Kassie's door and walked in. Jason was sitting next to her on the bed. Grissom move to sit next to Kassie, and as he sat she stood and went to sit on the other side of Jason, placing him between her and Grissom.

"Sara's not feeling well right now."

"She's sick?" Kassie asked.

"Kinda, it's just a minor infection. She'll be up and around by this afternoon. So while she's resting we need to be quiet alright?"

Kassie nodded with a quick motion, indicating her enthusiasm.

"Thank you. You can play downstairs, but remember to keep it quiet. I'll be in the basement." Grissom stood and headed to his sanctuary.

Grissom got in a few winks until he heard a loud thud and screaming coming from upstairs. He was awake now as he flew up the stairs to see what had caused the commotion. Jason was kneeling next to Kassie who was lying on the hardwood floor at the foot of the stairs. She was crying, and not just crying she was bawling.

"What happened?" Grissom asked.

"I think she fell down the stairs."

Grissom moved over and picked up Kassie and took her over to the couch. He sat down with her in his lap as she continued to cry.

"Shhh, it's okay. Where does it hurt?"

Kassie held up her arm and pointed to her wrist. Grissom took it in his hand and she let out a high pitched scream. He kept his touch as light as a butterfly as he examined the tiny wrist. He knew it wasn't broken, possibly sprained, and as he continued to examine it her crying began to subside. Grissom waited until her tears had nearly stopped.

"Here." He pulled her delicate wrist to his lips and gave it a quick kiss. "All better?"

She laid her head against his shoulder sniffling as Grissom held her.

"You'll be alright. But in the future you need to be more careful going up the stairs, ok?"

She nodded against his chest as he continued to caress her wrist. Grissom looked up and saw Sara standing at the end of the living room.

"Not ready hun?" She said.

Grissom pursed his lips at her as she walked into the room. "How are you feeling?"

"I feel fine." She said as she sat down next to them.

Kassie moved from Grissom's lap to Sara's. She wrapped her arms around Sara. Grissom observed Sara's reaction to the little girl's advances, Sara looked back at him. "What?"

"You'll be leaving in four days for that damn seminar in Denver, and I'll be on my own."

"Gil, you'll be fine. Jason will help."

"Where are you going?" Jason asked as he sat on the coffee table facing them.

"We have to attend a forensics seminar in Denver. I leave in four days and Gil will go after I get back."

"Sounds interesting. Why do you have to go Gil? I thought you knew it all."

Grissom sat a little taller at Jason's comment. "Thanks for the compliment, but no, I don't know everything. That's why you see all of the journals and magazines lying around here. We read the articles to learn about new ways to collect evidence, or a new type of procedure. Being a scientist doesn't mean you know everything. You're constantly learning about new ways to study things or in our case, forensics."

Jason nodded then stood and headed upstairs.

* * *

TBC

I hope you are enjoy it. And I enjoy getting reviews from you.

This is where thegreatbluespoon advises Madame Tipsy. We needed to get Grissom alone with the kids, and the next chapter does just that.


	7. Chapter 7

Ok, this is an amended chapter into this story that thegreatbluespoon insisted that I add something about Grissom alone with the kids. This is a last minute concoction from us so neither of my beta's have seen it so all of the mistakes are our doing.

Thanks to those who are still reading and reviwing. If you stick with me I'll throw you for a loop.

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Teens & Tribulations

Chapter 7

It was the first day of the four that Sara would be gone at the seminar with Catherine. Grissom tossed and turned and even resorted to clinging to her pillow and inhaling her scent. It still didn't help. Every half hour he checked the clock thinking that several hours had gone by.

"This is going to be the longest four days of my life." He said to no one as he rolled onto his back and stared at the ceiling.

He closed his eyes once again willing sleep to take over him. Just when he thought he might fall asleep, a disturbing noise coming form the living room had his eyes wide open. With a disgruntled moan, Grissom pulled himself from bed and dressed in his robe to see what the ruckus was all about.

The closer he got to the living room the louder the music got. He began to think that Greg was here and having a relapse with his music selections. Grissom walked into the living room and stopped dead in his tracks as he observed the scene before him. Jason and Kassie were eating cereal on the coffee table, mere inches from some of his text books. Jason was slurping up the soggy cereal while flipping through one of the latest forensic magazine's, his head bobbing up and down with the music. Kassie picked up her bowl and was attempting to drink her cereal while mimicking Jason. It's didn't work, and milk and cereal ran down the side of her cheeks spilling onto her pajama's and the carpet below.

"Hey." Grissom called out but the music drowned out his voice.

Jason kept multi-tasking as Grissom tried to gain their attention. It was when the chorus of the song came on that Grissom moved over and shut the stereo off.

_Well I could see,  
you home with me, but you were with another man, yea!  
I know we,  
ain't got much to say,  
before I let you get away, yea!  
I said, are you gonna be my girl?_

Jason continued to sing along loud enough so he could hear his own voice, but as the stereo died he was practically yelling. It took a few seconds for him to realize why the music had been shut off. Jason looked up at Grissom, then sunk as far as he could to the floor. Kassie was enthusiastic as she saw him.

"We're having cereal. Want some?" she asked with a smile on her face.

Grissom didn't respond as he was using deep breaths to control his anger. This was all so new to him that he didn't know how to react.

"No. I don't want any cereal. And you two know that there is no eating in the living room. So why are you in here?" Grissom spoke as calm as he could.

Jason didn't want to answer, he just looked into his cereal bowl.

"Jason?"

He took a deep breath and replied. "I wanted to listen to the radio and read."

"How can you do both?" Grissom shot back quickly.

Again Jason hung his head. "Sorry."

Grissom looked at the two youngsters and could read the sorrow that they had in their eyes. They knew he was upset with them. Grissom took several deep breaths.

"Let's get this cleaned up before it stains the carpet and Sara kills us all." Grissom helped them get things cleaned up before collapsing onto the couch. He wanted to just fall asleep, but when Kassie sat next to him he opened his eyes and looked down at her.

"Will you read me a book?" She asked innocently.

Grissom sighed. "What do you want to hear?"

"We have one started, I'll go get it." She ran upstairs to fetch the book.

Jason sat in the recliner across from Grissom and picked up another journal.

"Do you actually read the articles or just look at the pictures?" Grissom asked him.

Jason looked over the top of the magazine. "I read them."

"What's your favorite in that one?" Grissom asked. He had already read that particular one and was just thinking that he had caught Jason in a fib.

"I like the one on polymerase chain reaction. How they copy the chromosomes by separating the DNA helix." Jason said as he looked back into the text.

Grissom got a shocked look on his face as he knew Jason was right, that the article was present in that particular magazine. Just then Kassie came bounding down the stairs.

"I found it." She exclaimed as she handed Grissom the book.

He looked at it and then back at Jason who was setting down the magazine. "You're reading this to her?" Grissom said pointing to the book.

"Yeah, it's a great story."

"Don't you think it's a little advanced for her?"

"No. She likes it." Jason replied.

"Yeah, I like ghost stories." Kassie said as she settled into Grissom's side.

Jason settled back into the recliner giving Grissom his full attention. Grissom sighed and opened the book to where it was marked.

"Alright, 'Turn of the Screw' by Henry James, chapter 9..."

Grissom read until he realized that Kassie was sound asleep. He looked over at Jason, who was also asleep. Grissom closed the book and put his arm around Kassie and let 'Mr. Sandman' take him under.

Grissom slowly opened his eyes and heard the soft sound of Mozart filling his ears. He managed to focus his eyes and was staring directly into a pair of brown ones.

"What are you doing?" He asked.

"Watching your nose hairs wiggle." Kassie said laughing.

Grissom shook his head and tried to sit up straight but his body refused to move. Then he decided that it was the last time he was going to fall asleep sitting up on the couch.

Jason helped him get up. Grissom's back screamed at him and the first few steps he attempted were off balance.

"Do you have to go to work tonight?" Jason asked.

"Oh shit. What time is it?" Grissom asked.

"It's six. I already made some dinner if you want to eat."

"Yeah, let me take a shower first." Grissom headed off to his bedroom to get cleaned up.

Sara had been gone for twenty hours and he had nearly three more days to go. Grissom was sure by the time she returned, he would be dead.

He sat behind his desk with his head in his hands. After a long night of work and very little sleep with the kids in the house, Grissom was exhausted. He had only meant to shut his eyes for a few minutes before handing out assignments to the remainder of the night shift. Grissom opened his eyes as he heard talking and some commotion in the hall. He looked up puzzled, he didn't remember shutting the door. His eyes fell to his desk, the assignments were missing. Grissom searched under the papers on his desk to no avail. He looked up when his door opened.

"How do you feel?" Warrick asked.

"Fine, why?"

"You've been asleep in here for the past six hours."

Gissom's eyes grew to the size of half dollars as he checked his watch. "Damn. I didn't realize I was that tired. I'm sorry Warrick."

Warrick smiled. "It's cool. When you didn't show up in the break room I came looking for you. You were out like a light. So I handed out the assignments." He paused studying Grissom's reaction to everything. "Hard being a single parent huh?"

"What?" Grissom looked up. "Oh, yeah. I don't know how Catherine does it. I have a completely newfound respect for her."

"Tell you what..." Warrick sat down. "... you're the boss so you can agree or disagree with my idea. There wasn't much tonight, so why don't you take tomorrow night to rest and if it's looking like there's a lot to do here I'll buzz you?"

Grissom looked at Warrick.

"You better say yes, because you look like hell." Warrick said smiling.

Grissom agreed. "I feel like hell. Alright. But you had better call if anything comes up."

"Scout's honor." he said as he held up three fingers.

Grissom made it home before sunrise and into bed before Jason and Kassie were awake. He was entirely too tired to care about much at the moment and fell asleep fully clothed.

Jason made sure that he and Kassie were quiet that morning. She was a nuisance and needed to get out of the house. He did all he could to keep her from bouncing off the walls, but in the end was unsuccessful. She knocked on Grissom's bedroom door and entered. Kassie crawled up the bed and kneeled next to Grissom.

"What?" Came his sleep filled voice from under the covers.

"I want to go play outside." She said as she slowly started bouncing the mattress. "Pleaseeeee." She added.

Grissom was slow to respond and she kept her plea's coming until he answered. "Fine. I'm up."

"Yeah." Kassie exclaimed and hopped off the bed and ran down the hall.

Grissom forced himself out of bed and got dressed. When he made it out into the living room, Kassie and Jason were more than ready. "I got a bunch of work in the Denali so we'll have to take the truck."

He drove them to a park that was several blocks up the street. The instant the doors unlocked, Kassie bounded out and ran to the playground, and Jason headed to the basketball court. Grissom headed to a neighboring bench and sat down. He sat back to relax, but then the CSI in him woke up and he began to scour the area for anyone suspicious. Grissom had delt with enough pedophiles in the past that preyed on children at the park. He kept his eye on Kassie as she went from one obstacle to another. Every time he saw a man walking down the sidewalk alone he would watch them until they disappeared.

"Can I have a drink?" Kassie asked bringing his attention back to her.

"Sure." Grissom said as he passed her his water bottle. "Are you having fun?"

She nodded as she drank. He looked over to Jason, but didn't see him. Grissom's eyes scanned the area and found him kneeling in the grass next to a tree. Grissom looked back to Kassie on the swings then stood and headed over to Jason.

"What are you looking at Jason?" Grissom asked as he kneeled.

"This locust."

Grissom smiled. "Ah, _Magicicada septendecim._" Jason looked at him. "A cicada."

Jason poked the insect with his finger and it fluttered but didn't fly away. "Why doesn't it fly away?"

"Well, his life cycle is over and he's dying."

They were both engrossed in the dying locust, but when a little girl shrieked, they were up and looking for Kassie. She was screaming and running as a little boy about her age was chasing her with his arm extended.

Grissom was grateful that there was no cause for alarm. After another hour they loaded up and headed home. Once there Grissom laid down on the couch and closed his eyes. He was still tired.

He did manage to get some sleep before he heard his cell phone ring, but he made no attempt to get it. Then he heard Jason answer it.

"Hello...Hi Sara...no he's asleep. We kept him up most of the day yesterday...I know I'm sorry...Ok, hold on Kassie wants to talk to you."

He passed the phone to Kassie. "Hi." Kassie practically screamed into the phone. "Yes I'm being good...We went to the park today. There was this boy I met. His name's Billy, and he chased me around the playground with a bug, gross...Yeah, he's the best. I want him to be my new dad...Ok, I love you...Bye."

Even though his eyes were shut, tears escaped though his lashes as he heard Kassie confess to Sara.

TBC

Sorry Jess, I liked the locus better than the frog. Hey, what about the cat? For those of you who have no idea what I'm talking about, just think of Grissom and a dead cat and fill in the blanks.

Please review. I know that there are many who are reading but not reviewing. Tell me what you think or just to say hi. I'm a very social person. (When it involves something I know. Like horses or CSI.)

And a big contratulations to me. I earned the Oklahoma Quarter Horse Association's High point 3-year old halter mare of 2006, and got a really nice belt buckle. Yeah, like I need another belt buckle. But it's cool.


	8. Chapter 8

Thanks again to those who take the time to voice your opinions and send a review. Also, thanks to my beta's Just Thinking and thegreatbluespoon. Sorry this chapter is so short, and for not updating sooner, life has been hell lately.

* * *

Teens & Tribulations

Chapter 8

The next two days were easier on Grissom. It was hard for him to get used to this whole parenting thing. It was more like refereeing with him. Jason and Kassie did what they wanted and he would wither say 'yes' or 'no'. They practically ran rampant.

He was packing for his four days in Denver when Jason entered and sat on the bed next to his suitcase.

"How come you and Sara aren't married?" He asked bluntly.

Grissom stopped in his tracks and tried to think of a logical answer but couldn't. "I guess we are just waiting for the right time."

"Do you like having us around?"

Again, the question knocked the breath from his chest. "Yes. I enjoy having you and Kassie here. You're both great kids."

"But you don't want us to be your kids."

Grissom was truly speechless, he couldn't think of anything to say.

Jason stood and left the room. Grissom finished packing and gave Jason some last minute instructions. His flight and Sara's flight over lapped by an hour, and he wouldn't see her until he returned. Once he was satisfied that they would be alright, he headed down to the awaiting cab.

Sara walked into the townhouse three hours after Grissom had left. Both Kassie and Jason greeted her with open arms. They told her all of the details that happened while she was away. As they talked about the past four days she knew that Grissom was falling in love with the kids as much as she had.

For reasons unknown to her, Sara found that taking care of Jason and Kassie came effortlessly. With all of these new found emotions, she couldn't wait to finally get pregnant and go through everything from the start.

* * *

Sara waited at the airport terminal to pick up Greg and Grissom before she went to the lab. She calculated that it had been thirteen days since her infection was discovered and she and Grissom had been apart for eight days. Her doctor had given her a clean bill of health, and as she calculated further, it had been twelve days since her period.

She spotted Grissom and headed over to embrace him. He held her tight and gave her a gentle kiss on the cheek.

"I missed you." She said.

"I missed you too. I'm ready to go home. It's been the longest and most pointless four days of my life." Grissom said.

Sara smiled as Greg approached them and they headed out of the air port. Grissom was relived when they finally pulled into their driveway. As they walked in the front door he heard Kassie yell. She ran over to Grissom with her hands in the air. He bent down and scooped her up before she ran into his legs. Jason came running down the stairs to greet him.

"What's the occasion?" Grissom asked.

Jason and Sara smiled at each other. "Child Services called yesterday." Sara said.

"And?"

"It's official. They are available for adoption." Sara stated.

Kassie squeezed Grissom and leaned back in his embrace. "I want you to be my daddy."

Grissom's eyebrows went up at the little girl's confession. Sara and Jason smiled. They knew the line was rehearsed just to get Grissom to change his mind.

"But Sara and I are not married yet." Grissom told her.

"Why not?" She asked him.

"Well..." Grissom paused and looked at Sara. "...I guess I don't know why."

Jason added. "So what's stopping you, this is Vegas."

Grissom couldn't help but smile at Jason's remark, and Sara was smiling at Grissom. His brain was going into over drive, this was uncharted territory. Hell all of this was uncharted territory. "When do you want to get married Sara?"

"Tomorrow."

"Tomorrow!?" Grissom could feel his eyes nearly pop out of his skull.

Sara nodded. "Catherine and I have done a little planning on our own while we were away and since we've been home. We just needed to get you roped into it."

He moved to stand very close to Sara. "I'm already roped." He leaned in and kissed her.

"Eewww." Kassie exclaimed as they kissed.

Sara went to the lab and Grissom stayed home to rest. Or that's what he had intended. Kassie refused to go to bed and Jason had transformed into a typical teenager, he was flipping though the radio stations only stopping when it played a song he liked. Grissom didn't want to fight them, so he let them have their fun until their bodies tired. He stayed in the basement working until around two in the morning when he heard nothing but the radio playing through the floorboards.

Grissom made his way up stairs and found Kassie sound asleep on the couch and Jason was curled up in the recliner. He turned off the stereo and decided to get some sleep himself.

Sara was far from exhausted as she entered the house. Catherine had helped her organize a small proverbial shotgun wedding for that evening. The two of them made all the necessary arrangements and then some. She placed her keys on the counter and was halted by the scene in front of her. Sara placed her hands on her hips, rolled her eyes, and headed into the bedroom.

Grissom was sound asleep when she entered. "Gil."

He didn't move. Sara kneeled on the bed and pinched him.

"Ow dammit."

"Gil, how late were the kids up last night?"

"You mean this morning." He said sleepily.

"Oh, you have got to be kidding. Grissom, we're getting married tonight, they are sound asleep in the living room, and you're exhausted." Sara's anger was present in her voice.

"Relax, I'm fine and they will be too. If they can go as long as they did last night, tonight shouldn't be a problem."

She sat back on the bed. "Ecklie knows." she kept her voice quiet when she revealed that little it of information.

It woke Grissom right up. "How did he find out?"

"He was eves dropping at the start of shift and over heard Nick talking to Warrick about it. He didn't confront me about it."

"No, he's not like that. He's not going to confront either of us. He's just going to squeal to the higher up's. I guess I'll have some explaining to do tonight."

"Hello, we are getting married tonight."

"Yeah, so?"

"Don't you want to consummate your marriage to me?"

"Oh yeah. Sorry, I'm still tired."

Sara rolled her eyes at him and went to fix breakfast. She prepared enough for four, but only her and Grissom ate. Jason and Kassie never moved the entire time.

"They need to wake up."

"Why?" Grissom asked.

"Catherine and I are taking them to get outfitted for tonight."

"How dressy is this going to be?"

"Well just you and Brass will be in tuxes, I have a dress, and I'm not sure what Catherine has the others dressed in. It's just going to be the team and a few others, real small."

"Why does Brass need to wear a tux?"

"He's giving the bride away." Sara said as she stood to wake the two unconscious kids strung out in the living room.

* * *

Review, review, reivew. Please. I like to read reviews.


	9. Chapter 9

I want to thank those who reivewed over the past 8 chapters. If you are one of the many who have not, I encourage you to share your thoughts. Thanks to my beta, Just Thinking, and to my PSYCOtherapist, thegreatbluespoon.

Teens & Tribulations

Chapter 9

Grissom stood nervously outside next to the canal at the Venetian. The sun was setting in the back ground casting an orange glow in the warm Nevada sky. He watched as Kassie walked to him dropping flower petals from a basket she was carrying. Then he saw her.

Sara walked arm in arm with Brass as they approached the preacher. Vows and rings were exchanged, tears were shed, and in the end Grissom leaned in, kissed Sara, and became her husband.

It shocked them both at the noise that 15 people could make. The reception wasn't much, just the traditional cake and dancing. Catherine shared a dance with Grissom while Sara danced with Brass.

"Catherine."

"Yes Gil."

"A shotgun wedding at the Venetian, how did you pull it off?"

"Well, it wasn't easy, but I was able to pull a few strings. This is my wedding gift to you guys because I'm broke and my supervisor is late turning in evaluations again."

He shot her a suprised look. "Sorry. I'll get them in tonight."

"Like hell. You and Sara have a room here and I'm taking Jason and Kassie with me tonight. I know it's only a one night honeymoon, but it is short notice. So make use of it will ya." She winked at him.

"You are just as bad as Sara."

Grissom and Sara entered the suite that was reserved for them. The patio door was open allowing the warn night air to flood the room. Grissom walked over to two gifts that were wrapped and sitting in the middle of the room. One was to him and the other to Sara, but there was no indication as to whom they were from.

"Who sent those?" Sara asked.

"I have no idea, and I don't recognize the hand writing."

"I'll open mine."

Sara picked up the box and peeked in, then shut the lid quickly.

"What's in there?" Grissom was curious now.

"They're from Catherine, I know it." She peeked into the box again.

"Let me see."

"Okay." Sara took the box and headed into the bath room.

Grissom shook his head and opened the one labeled to him. His eyes widened at the sight of the royal blue silk robe. He removed it from the box and decided that it looked way more comfortable than the tux he was wearing.

He was sitting on the couch in the robe when Sara walked in.

"Oh, we match."

Grissom looked up at her and his mouth dropped. Sara was in a teddy the same color as his robe. She curled up beside him and he pulled her close. Sara looked over to the fireplace that was on the other side of the room. She kissed Grissom and stood. After she lit the fire, she proceeded to turn off the lights.

"What do you say we make use of this big soft rug?" She said as she kneeled down in front of the fire.

Grissom stood and moved towards her. As he was kneeling Sara pulled him on top of her as their mouths met.

The sun shone through the drapes and the warm breeze blew them gently as Sara opened her eyes. She remembered last night well and wondered if she was going to be able to even walk. Grissom had her wrapped up as they lay under a sheet on the large bed. The evening started in front of the fire place. Grissom was gentle and caring as they made love for the first time as husband and wife. After that it was everywhere and anywhere, until they wound up in bed. She assumed he was still asleep when she heard his phone ring.

"You have got to be kidding me?" Grissom said, his voice heavy with sleep.

"I can't believe you even brought your phone."

"Well they can leave a message, because I can't move."

She smiled and laid back down beside him.

It was noon before Grissom and Sara headed home. The house was quiet and they assumed that Jason and Kassie were still at Catherine's. So Grissom kept the honeymoon going, only; he forgot to follow his own advice, assume nothing.

Things were just getting heated in their dimly lit bedroom. Grissom had positioned himself to enter Sara as his mouth worked feverishly on her neck. The sound of the door opening brought everything to a screeching halt. He gently laid on top of Sara to cover her as Kassie slowly walked to the side of the bed.

Her nose was red and her skin was pale. She sniffled in between words. "I feel yucky."

Grissom hung his head, and thought, 'Honeymoon's officially over.' as he carefully moved off of Sara.

"Why don't you go back up to your room and I'll be right there, ok?" Sara said.

Kassie nodded and made her way out.

Sara gave Grissom a sympathetic look. "Sorry."

"I understand."

She quickly dressed in her robe and grabbed some medicine out of their bathroom and headed up to Kassie. Grissom let out a loud moan as he rolled to his back venting his frustration. He was still aroused and could not be like the light switch Sara was, on and off in a matter of seconds. Once the switch was turned on it took some time for the light to go out.

Sara returned fifteen minutes later. "Are you still...?"

"No. I'm fine."

"Did you handle it yourself?"

He looked at her as if she had sprouted another head. "No, what kind of question is that?"

"I just didn't know if you needed the gratification of release."

Grissom chewed on her comment and didn't respond. She climbed back into bed beside him and they spent the rest of the afternoon in each other's arms. When five o'clock rolled around they both drug themselves out of bed and prepared to get ready for another night at the salt mine.

"Good evening." Jason's voice greeted them from the kitchen.

"What is it with you and cooking?" Grissom asked.

"Oh, well my dad used to make me cook all of the meals."

Sara asked, "How old were you when you started doing that?"

He looked up as if the answer was written on the ceiling. "I can't recall."

"Then you were too young, I'm sure you enjoy it, but from now on I'll prepare the meals and you be the kid who just eats and does dishes." Sara responded.

"What about breakfast?" Jason asked.

"Only on the weekends. You need to be a kid, go to school, make friends, and not have to worry about stuff at home alright?" Sara said as she placed her hands on his shoulders. "You can help by looking after your sister."

Jason smiled and moved out of the kitchen.

"Did you enjoy yourselves over at Catherine's?" Grissom asked as Sara went about in the kitchen.

Jason perked up. "Yeah, about that, I was wondering when I might be able to go back."

Grissom looked at Sara and she returned his stare as they both mouthed 'Lindsey' to each other.

"I take it you met Lindsey?" Grissom inquired.

"Yeah, she's really nice."

"Is that the only reason?"

Jason looked at the floor before he responded, "No."

Grissom pursed his lips. "Jason, it's perfectly normal for a boy your age to start having different feelings about girls. Your body's changing. Your brain is producing more hormones which causes a chemical reaction that..."

"Gil Grissom, don't preach to him like a scientist and give him all the minute details." Sara interrupted. "Just start with an overview."

"Would you like to do this, cause he needs to know?"

"No, you're the father figure it's your job."

"Then shut up and let me do this my way."

Sara smiled at him, and he smiled back as she let them be.

Grissom sucked in a breath wondering how much he could reveal about the wonders of puberty. "Jason, come with me." he led him down to the basement.

Sara made some soup for Kassie and took it up to her room as the 'boys' were not back from their discussion. She helped her eat gave her some water as a look of concern crossed her face. Kassie could barely hold her head up and was warmer than normal under Sara's touch. She headed downstairs and called Catherine.

"Willow's."

"Cath, it's Sara, listen, who did you take Lindsey to when she was sick?"

"Sara, what's wrong?"

"Kassie's sick. She's starting to run a temperature, she's lethargic, and near dehydration."

"Take her to the ER and tell the attending that your pediatrician is Dr. Sommers."

"Thanks Cath."

She hung up and headed into the basement, and found Grissom and Jason thumbing through books. Grissom looked up when she entered.

"We need to take Kassie to the hospital. She's really sick."

Grissom and Jason were on their feet and the three of them headed upstairs. Sara settled in the back seat with Kassie snuggled in her lap while Jason sat up front with Grissom as he pointed the truck towards Desert Palms.

Sara sat in the chair next to Kassie's hospital bed, Jason stood at the foot of it looking over his sister, while Grissom stared out of the window. Here he was again, watching someone he had come to care about lay sick in the hospital. He couldn't place the strange pain he had in his chest. It was different from when Sara had her little incident. Grissom looked back over his shoulder at Kassie. She was young and innocent, and he had to admit the little girl did hold a special place in his heart. He turned when Dr. Sommers entered.

"Mr. and Mrs. Grissom, Kassie has the flu."

"But it's July." Sara commented.

"Yes, and unfortunately for Kassie, we only have a record of her being born in this hospital. As for as we know she has never had any of her immunizations." he looked at Jason. "And I had the nurse pull your medical records, same goes for you."

"Is it too late for him to get his?" Grissom asked.

"No, a nurse will be here shortly to administer then. He will have to come back in a few weeks for a second round." The doctor sighed. "As for Kassie, well, we just need to keep her hydrated and monitor her for now." He looked at Jason again; Grissom read the doctors face and knew what he wanted to say wasn't good.

"Just say it." Grissom said.

"As you know the flu can be fatal. And in her case, there is a chance..."

"NO! She's going to be fine, you'll see!" Jason screamed with tears in his eyes as Grissom grabbed him and pulled him against his chest as Jason cried.

"I'm not saying she's going to die, you caught it early and brought her here. That alone increases her chance of recovery." Dr. Sommers said.

Sara silently thanked the doctor as she watched Grissom comfort Jason as he let out his frustration through his tears.

* * *

Grissom was late, and as he walked into the break room as Nick and Greg started heckling him. He noticed Catherine was absent so he knew none of the others knew about Kassie.

"So, had to sleep in from exhaustion huh?" Nick poked.

"Either that or he's been awake the entire time." Greg added.

Only Warrick saw Grissom's reaction. "Hey, shut up you guys. Griss what's wrong man?"

"Kassie's in the hospital." The room suddenly got eerie quiet as he continued. "She's got the flu." The pitch of his voice was soft and never changed as he explained the situation to the guys.

Catherine walked in and noticed the silence. She realized the situation was worse than she had originally thought. "How is she Gil?"

"Flu. The hospital has no records on her or Jason getting any of their immunizations. That's why there's a chance she might not..." His voice caught in his throat. He sat down heavily in the chair behind him, and blankly stared ahead, how could one little girl cause his world to stop turning.

TBC

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Please share your thoughts or opinions by reivewing. And to those who have are reading this, I am collaborating a story with thegreatbluespoon. Our ID is: thegreatTDCSI. Original huh? Not my idea, but we are going to be posting it shortly so please keep your eyes peeled for it and check it out. It's going to be rated M, but hey, we're all adults. (or close enough) Thanks for reading. 


	10. Chapter 10

Thanks to all that have been reading and reviewing this story. And also to Just Thinking for the beta work. Then there is also thegreatbluespoon, she likes to talk to Madame Tipsy, and put in her two cents worth. Enjoy this next installment.

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Teens & Tribulations

Chapter 10

Grissom sat in his office half the night thinking of Kassie. The little girl had stolen his heart in a very short time. He needed to think, so he headed off to help Catherine at her crime scene.

On the way he stopped by the house. He was getting a bottle of water out of the fridge and was forced to look at Kassie's picture she had colored hanging there. Grissom looked at the picture for what seemed like eternity before he noticed the light blinking on the answering machine. He walked over and punched the button.

"_Hi, my name is Susan Hays from Child Services. I am calling to inform you that your status as the foster family for Jason Miller and Kassie Marlin has been finalized. They will remain in your care until adopted. You will receive compensation and the children are covered under the states medical assistant program. Thank you."_

Grissom erased the message and headed out. He arrived at Catherine's scene twenty minutes later.

"Gil, to what do I owe the honor of your presents?"

"I needed to get out of my office. What can I do?"

He started collecting evidence, but to Catherine he was unusually quiet. Normally Grissom would be theorizing over every little thing. This time he remained silent.

"I think I know how Kassie got the flu." Catherine said breaking the ice.

Grissom stopped what he was doing and looked over at her but didn't respond as he waiting for her to continue.

"Jason and Lindsey were horsing around and fell into the pool. Kassie jumped in fully clothed." Grissom straightened up as his eyes grew larger by the second. "They got her out alright, but she got cold fast. If I would have known she hadn't had her immunizations I would have thought more about it. I'm sorry."

Grissom counted to ten and slowly released his breath. He didn't know why all of a sudden he was so angry with Catherine. "No one knew. You didn't cause it and there was nothing you could have done to prevent it." He looked back down at what he was doing, and remained silent the rest of the time he was there. He stopped by the house on his way back to the lab. He planned on going straight to the hospital after shift, but he needed a shower first.

Once he was finished at the lab, Grissom locked his office and headed out. It was still early for the 'powers that be' to be arriving, but he thought wrong as he heard Ecklie screech his name.

"Gil, I need to have a word with you."

"Not now Conrad." he replied.

Ecklie started walking after Grissom. "No, now. The Sheriff and Lab Director are waiting in my office."

"Maybe you didn't hear me the first time." Grissom's tone of voice changed dramatically as he spoke.

"Gil. That's enough. We just want to go over something with you. It won't take but a few minutes." the sheriff butted in suddenly.

Grissom sighed heavily and nodded as they headed to Ecklie's office.

"Listen Gil..."

"Can it Conrad." The sheriff said. "I'll do the talking. I want to keep this civilized."

Grissom smirked at Ecklie as he sat back in his chair and bit his lip.

"Gil, rumors are going around that you and Miss Sidle are married. Is this true?"

Grissom paused and it was just enough to give Ecklie what he needed.

"Ha, I knew it." Ecklie said triumphantly.

The sheriff stood and threw Ecklie out of his own office. Now it was just Grissom, the Lab Director and the Sheriff.

"Yes, it's true. Here is our marriage licence." Grissom fished out the pale yellow piece of paper and handed it over.

The Sheriff continued. "Ok, now here's what's going to happen. I assume Miss Sidle, or Mrs. Grissom, want's to stay working the night shift. Since you are the supervisor and responsible for team evaluations, her evaluation will from now on be filled out by Catherine Willows. Do you object to any of this so far?"

"No."

"Good. I just want to make this very clear, and I'm only going to say it once. If word gets back to me or even Ecklie that you are playing favorites, this agreement will become void and other actions will be taken. But I have confidence that this will not happen, since you have already married her, just how long were you courting Miss Sidle?"

Grissom thought back to the events leading up to when Brass was shot and nearly died. "Oh, I would say around six months."

"That's what I'm getting at here. We understand that there has already been an established relationship, and the lab hasn't suffered. That's what I want to maintain."

"Sara and I feel the same way."

"Good." The Sheriff stood and shook Grissom's hand as did the Director.

They also congratulated him as he walked out. Grissom stopped as he passed Ecklie and couldn't hold in the smile that came over his face. "You loose Conrad." And with that he headed to the hospital.

Grissom slowly entered Kassie's room. Sara opened her eyes from her sleeping position in the chair and smiled at him. He moved over to her as she stood, and embraced him.

"How's she doing?"

"Her fever has broke." Sara replied.

"That's good. Listen why don't you and Jason go home and get cleaned up. I'll stay with her until you get back." Grissom suggested.

Sara thought briefly about protesting . "Alright." She moved to gather her things as Grissom went to wake Jason who was sound asleep on the couch in the room.

Sara and Jason headed home as Grissom sat down in the chair next to Kassie's bed. He stared at her for an eternity, when a familiar voice broke his train of thought.

"How is she?" Catherine asked.

Grissom looked up, "She's getting better, slowly but surely. Hi Lindsey."

"Hi. I'm so sorry, we were just playing and it wasn't' like we intended her to jump in..." She stopped when Grissom raised his hands at her.

"Lindsey, you did nothing. It was just a freak accident. She'll be alright."

Lindsey smiled, "Is Jason here?"

"He went home with Sara, but they'll be back."

"Linds, could you give us a minute?" Catherine asked.

"Sure. Oh, this is for Kassie." Lindsey handed Grissom a white teddy bear that was holding a heart and had a band-aid on his arm.

"I'll be sure to give it to her when she wakes up."

Catherine sat down next to Grissom. She looked at Kassie as Grissom set the bear on the bed next to her. "Gil,...you remember what it was like to be a teenager don't you?"

Grissom looked confused. "Yeah. Where are you going with this Catherine?"

"Well after I had taken Kassie inside to dry off, I looked back out and saw Jason and Lindsey sitting by the pool doing the little back and forth flirting." She paused to see if Grissom would respond.

"So?"

"Gil, open your eyes. He's thirteen, she's fourteen. Get it."

"Catherine, are you afraid that they will be having sex before too long?"

She stood and paced to curb her anger. "I'm just saying, I don't want to see anything happen to either one of them. I know when I was young that's all that was on my mind."

"I wouldn't know. Listen, he's just starting to go through puberty, and maybe when they are older they won't have this thing going between them."

"Ha." Catherine said sarcastically, "Just wait until you see how they look at each other. Crush doesn't even begin to describe it."

Grissom motioned to the other chair, "Sit down, and calm down."

Catherine sat as Grissom turned his attention back to Kassie. "She's special to you, isn't she?"

He looked over his shoulder at Catherine and smiled. "Yes she is."

They sat in silence until Sara and Jason walked back in.

"Hi, Catherine. How's she doing Gil?"

"Same as when you left."

"Ms. Willows, is Lindsey around?" Jason asked.

Catherine glared back at Grissom. "She was out in the hall."

Jason walked out to search for Lindsey. Sara cracked a smile back at Catherine.

"Don't worry Cath, Grissom already gave him the talk about the birds and bees."

"I didn't talk to him about sex, I just showed him about what happens during puberty in some of the books I have."

"Thanks Gil, that makes me feel so much better." Catherine said sarcastically.

A soft moan silenced them as Sara and Grissom gathered around Kassie's bed. Her tiny eyes opened as Sara and Grissom breathed a sigh of relief.

Sara placed her hand on the little girl's forehead, "Hi sweetie. How are you feeling?"

"Ok, my arm itches." Kassie said as she tried to scratch her arm.

Sara stopped her. "I know it itches, but you need to leave it alone. That's your IV."

Catherine walked out to give them some privacy, so she went in search of her daughter.

Kassie was released the next day. After Sara put her to bed she found Grissom reading in the living room.

"Anything exciting?"

"No. Sara,..." He paused as she sat next to him and noticed what he was reading.

"Gil, are you thinking about going through with adopting Jason and Kassie?"

"I've been looking into it. It's not an overnight done deal Sara. For a few months a caseworker will be assigned...I guess to make sure we don't screw up, then we can petition a judge for the official adoption. And there is a lot of digging into our lives."

"This is what I want Gil. Is it what you want?"

He removed his glasses and looked at Sara. "When I saw Kassie lying in that hospital bed, I thought I might loose it right there. She's so young and innocent, and Jason, he so smart. Kinda reminds me of when I was his age. I'm not sure if another family might see it that way. At least we wouldn't care about experiments, or..."

"Gil." Sara interrupted by placing her finger over his lips. "Do you, Gil Grissom, want these kids to grow up in our home, under our care?"

"Yes. I do."

Sara smiled and went to retrieve the paper work she had already started. She and Grissom filled out what was required of them and placed it in an envelope.

"Thank you." Sara said as she leaned over to hug him. She then stood, "I'm going to go check on Kassie.

Grissom nodded and watched her go up the stairs. As he sat there he thought about what the future would now hold for him and Sara. He laid his head on the back of the couch allowing his brain to relax, and the minute it did, he was asleep.

Sara stopped before she reached the landing on the stairs and looked at Grissom sleeping on the couch. She knew she had to wake him otherwise, his body wouldn't let him forget how he slept. Sara removed his glasses and gave him a soft kiss on the lips.

"Gil, come to bed, you're exhausted."

She tugged at his arms and he slowly stood in a half asleep state and allowed her to lead him to bed.

* * *

Reviews, the more I get the faster I'll update. 

Ok, and for you all looking for another story to read, it's offical, thegreatTDCSI has posted "What Goes Around..." It's rated M, for language, among other things. :) Surf on over and check it out.


	11. Chapter 11

Ahh, spring break. It's the reason I haven't been on my computer for like, forever. That and the damn time change always screws me up. Thanks again to Just Thinking for all the help. And of course I can't forget my favorite asshat, thegreatbluespoon.

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Teens & Tribulations

Chapter 11

After the final approval of their foster family status, visits from outsiders came, frequently at first, as July rolled into August. Grissom busied himself at filling out the appropriate paper work for adding Jason and Kassie to their insurance policies at the lab. Sara was busy getting them enrolled in school.

This was to be Kassie's first year of Kindergarten, and Jason was having to start fresh in Junior High. No school system in the city had a record of him completing the 6th grade. Grissom protested to the best of his ability to the superintendents, but it came to no avail. So he decided to pull some strings and got Jason enrolled in an evening chemistry class at UNLV. Grissom only hoped hormones hadn't clouded his brain too much. In the past month Jason's voice dropped several octaves, and he was seeing more of Lindsey. Catherine was less than thrilled about the whole idea of it all. The only reason she agreed was because of Grissom and Sara. She knew they would help keep a leash on the two walking, talking, hormones.

On the first day of school, Sara went home early from the lab to be able to take the kids to school. Jason had helped get Kassie ready, as he got himself prepared. Grissom got there just before they left, he wished them luck and headed to the shower. He started the water and was looking himself over in the mirror when he looked down into the waste basket. Puzzled, he bent over and carefully removed the home pregnancy test. Grissom looked at it and frowned. It had been nearly two months since he could last recall Sara's last period, but it was also when they discovered the infection. He started trying to do the math in his head, but when it came to trying to calculate a woman's cycle, he gave up and got in the shower.

Sara came home an hour later to take a shower her self. As she climbed into be next to Grissom, he turned to wrap his arms around her.

"Are you pregnant?" He asked half asleep.

"You know I'm not." She sighed. "I'm thinking that infection might have screwed me up. It's been two months since my last period. That's why I took the pregnancy test. I thought I might be, and I'm surprised I'm not after all the sex we had on our one night honeymoon."

Grissom smiled at her venting frustration.

"It's not funny Gil." She shot back.

"I know it's not funny. I'm sorry if it seemed that way. It's been six weeks since we got married, and that night was the only successful night we had. Both of our stress levels are up from work and getting things organized with the kids, and I can't count how many times we were interrupted."

"I know, it's just frustrating."

Grissom pulled her closer to him. "Just lay back and rest. That's what you need."

They both succumbed to the pull of exhaustion as they held each other.

Grissom woke as he heard the front door open. To him it sounded as if a herd of elephants decided to run rampant through his home. The bed room door flew open and Kassie jumped on to the bed causing Grissom to let out a grunt as she landed on him.

"Look what I colored today." Kassie exclaimed.

Sara sat up and took the drawing. "Wow, that's good. Look Gil."

Grissom attempted to sit up as Kassie moved off of him. He looked at the picture but without his glasses his eyes couldn't focus on what it was. "Yeah, that's nice Kassie." He handed the picture back.

Sara smiled, she knew he couldn't see it. "What else did you do today?"

"We colored things that start with 'A', like apple. Then we played out side on this great big play set." She was bouncing on the bed while talking. Sara was sitting up paying attention, while Grissom laid back down to let his body move with the mattress.

"Did you make any friend's?" Sara asked.

"Yeah, this one girl, her name's Susan. She's like me."

"What do you mean like you? Does she have brown hair also?"

Kassie laughed, "No, she has red hair."

"So why is she like you?" Grissom asked from under the covers.

"Cause she has a new mommy and daddy too." Kassie kept jumping as Sara looked at Grissom. His eyes shot open with Kassie comment. "Oh, and we get to bring a parent to school sometime."

"Why's that?" Sara asked.

"Cause teacher wants us to share what their jobs are."

"Great, tell a group of kindergartners that we work with dead people." Grissom said sarcastically under his breath, but Sara heard it and gave him a shove.

"Shut up. Kassie why don't you go ahead and go play."

"Okay." She said and jumped off the bed and ran out into the living room.

"I should make you be the one who goes to kindergarten for that smart ass comment." Sara said as she poked Grissom's side.

He growled and quickly had her offending hands in his as he pinned them over her head. Sara was laughing but stopped when that sudden urge hit her. She looked over and made sure the door was closed, before looking back into Grissom's eyes. He had the same look of urgency that she did. For a moment neither of them moved or spoke as they looked into each other's eyes. It was as if once they started, they surely would be interrupted.

"We need to make this quick before she runs back in here." Sara said softly.

Grissom grinned with only one side of his mouth. "I can do that."

For the first time in over six weeks they were able to finish what they started. Grissom fell back asleep, but Sara climbed out of bed when she heard another voice echoing from the living room. She dressed in her robe and headed out.

"Hi Sara."

"Lindsey. Does your mom know you are here?"

"No, she's probably still asleep."

Jason butted in. "We have physics together."

"Yeah, and we already got home work." Lindsey said disgustingly.

Sara smiled and headed into make coffee. It was four thirty and she knew Catherine would be calling shortly to find out where her daughter was. Just as the thought entered her mind the phone rang.

"Hello."

"Sara, is Lindsey over there?" Catherine asked.

"Yeah, they are working on Physics home work. I guess they are in the same class." Sara replied.

"Yeah, Lindsey failed it last year. She's not very good at science. How did your two do for their first day?"

"Good as far as I know. This is all going to be hard to get used to." Sara said.

"Yeah, but just think, when you two have one of your own, you'll get to start from scratch. Starting with two that are older like Jason and Kassie is cheating in my book."

"Ha ha, very funny Catherine." Sara said dryly, " Grissom and I are still figuring things out with these two. It's been frustrating."

"I'm always here if you need help. Do me a favor, drop Lindsey at the house on your way to the lab?"

"Sure, but she can stay here tonight."

"Like hell! It's a school night, and both you and Gil are working."

"Settle down Catherine it was a joke." Sara laughed.

"We'll see who's laughing when Kassie turns fourteen and some young stud wants to get her in the sack."

"I think Gil's planning on locking her up 'til she's thirty." Sara laughed as Catherine responded.

"See what I mean. I'll see you tonight. Thanks Sara."

"No problem." Sara hung up and walked into the living room. "That was your mother."

"Figures, she always freaks out when I don't let her know where I'm at." Lindsey said.

Sara sighed, "Well when you see what we see everyday in our jobs, yeah, she has the right to freak out." Sara pointed to Jason. "That goes for you too. Gil's going to get you a cell phone."

"Cool." Jason exclaimed.

"It's only for emergencies and to tell us where you will be if your not coming home. Besides if I ever hear of you not escorting Kassie home on the bus, I will kick your butt. Got it?"

"Got it."

"Good." Sara said.

As a celebration dinner for their first day of school, Sara ordered pizza. Grissom was less than thrilled but ate a few slices anyway.

"When's my chemistry class?" Jason asked.

"It's Wednesday night from five to seven." Grissom responded. "That's my night off so I can take you."

"My science teacher is also the high school chemistry teacher, and I told him I was taking a chemistry class at the college. You should have seen his face, it was classic." Jason said as he laughed.

Sara smiled at Grissom as they looked at Jason with there heads slightly tilted, and goofy grins on their faces.

"What?" Jason asked.

"Your voice. The pitch goes up and down when you talk in long sentences." Sara said as she tried to hold back a laugh.

"Shut up, I can't help it. I'm becoming a man, right Gil?"

Grissom choked on his drink causing the whole table to burst out laughing at the combination of question and response.

After dinner Grissom was preparing to head off to the lab. He was taking Lindsey home, so she and Jason headed to the truck first. Grissom gave Sara a quick kiss and opened the door just in time to catch Jason giving Lindsey a little peck on the cheek. He shut the door and stared at it.

"What's wrong?" Sara asked.

"He's kissing her on the cheek."

"Well don't tell Catherine."

Grissom looked at her confused. "It's just a peck on the cheek."

Sara moved to stand in front of him. "Think of it this way. What if it was Kassie standing out there with a boy kissing her?"

"I'd kill him." Sara smiled.

"Point taken." Grissom opened the door and headed out to break up the scene.

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Well since it's been so long since I updated, I hope there are still people out there reading this. As always I crave your reviews, they make me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.

Don't forget about my collaborated story with thegreatbluespoon, What Goes Around, ya'll need to check it out.


	12. Chapter 12

Ok, I said I would up date sooner, and I didn't. Well I guess it's only been 5 days, so that's not bad. Much thanks to Just Thinking. Because of her it might be a while before my next update. Making some serious changes we are. And thegreatbluespoon, because she's been on her death bed the past week, she's been absolutely no help, except for letting me verbally abuse her. Thanks dear.

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Teens & Tribulations

Chapter 12

The first few weeks rolled by fairly smoothly. The kids were doing well in school, things were going good at the lab. Ecklie was staying clear of Grissom, and that put him in a better mood. Sara still wasn't pregnant as the infection returned, so she and Grissom were back on antibiotics, and again they had to be abstinent for a few weeks. It wasn't hard for them as things at the lab began to get hectic.

Sara was the only one at there when the kids would get home from school. The only thing she determined was keeping her sane was the stories Kassie told her every afternoon when she got home from school.

Happily ever after was about to get its first test. Grissom was pulling two doubles back to back with only a few hours of sleep in between. He was well into his second double when Brass poked his head in.

"Hey, grab your kit." was all he said before he walked away.

Grissom sighed in an attempt to release his frustration. He was soon standing next to Brass in front of the large familiar house as Brass rang the door bell.

The door opened and Grissom held his breath.

"Detective, Dr. Grissom. Thank you for coming." the woman said as she stepped back and allowed them to pass with two other officers. "Follow me."

Brass looked at Grissom whose face was unreadable. "You alright?"

"Yeah. Fine." Grissom responded coldly.

They made their way to the back of the house then to where an indoor pool lay. A woman's body was at the bottom of the pool.

"Why isn't she floating?" Grissom asked.

The woman answered, "The cleaning system was on for a few hours during the day. I turned it off when I found her, but I think she is stuck."

"So you discovered the body?" Brass asked.

"Yes."

She moved closer to Grissom as they looked into the pool. Grissom looked over at the woman slightly and took a half a step away from her. She noticed his motion and smiled.

It took some time but once they finally had the body removed, it was taken back to the morgue by David. Only Brass and Grissom remained to finish up processing. Grissom didn't speak more than necessary to the woman until they were preparing to leave themselves.

"Well there's nothing more I can do here, we'll be in touch." Grissom said.

"Will I see you again? It's been a while."

Brass smiled and headed for the door but didn't walk through it. He wanted to make sure Grissom didn't fall for the woman's spells again.

They faced each other as Grissom's exhaustion was taking a toll on his perception, as the woman cupped his face in her hands and she leaned in to kiss him. The sudden sensation of her soft lips hypnotized Grissom for a few moments. Brass looked at the floor and tried to curb his anger. The sound of Grissom's voice caused him to raise his head.

"Heather stop." Grissom said as he pulled her hands from his face. "I can't do this."

She nodded. "It's your coworker isn't it? The brunette?"

"She's my wife. This isn't going to happen. Not now, not ever." Grissom said firmly. "Good bye Heather." He then walked over to the door and noticed the look he was getting from Brass. "I don't want to hear it." he said as he walked through the door and went straight to the car.

Brass got in behind the wheel and hesitated. "Look Gil..."

"Don't." Grissom sternly interrupted.

"Well I'm gonna. You have a great thing going at home, a beautiful wife, two great kids, don't screw that up."

"Why did you bring me here?"

"Two reasons. One, you are the only one who is comfortable around her, and two, you are a great friend Gil, but if I ever hear of you cheating on Sara, I will personally kill you."

Grissom's exhaustion and anger was getting the best of him. "So you brought me here to see if I would stray from my marriage with Sara? How dare you Jim. You should know me better than that."

Their voices were getting louder and louder in the car. Fortunately the drive back to the lab was short, but they didn't stop there as they continued to yell at each other in the parking lot, but they weren't the only one's around as their anger won over logic.

"Gil, I know you and Heather have a past. I thought it was just an itch you needed to scratch every now and then. I assumed you were friends, but deep down there was something more wasn't there?"

"My business with Heather is nobody's business but my own! It's in the past and it's over!" Grissom yelled back causing the tendons in his neck to surface.

"Past my ass! You stand there and do nothing while she kisses you, come on, I may have been born at night, but I wasn't born last night!" Brass shot back.

Grissom was about to respond when he noticed Catherine and Sara standing in the background behind Brass. Jim turned to see the two women standing there and cursed under his breath. Sara's eyes filled with tears as she and Catherine overheard the entire argument. Catherine looked over at Sara just as she ran into the lab.

"Sara!" Grissom hollered after her, but she didn't stop. He turned back to face Brass.

"Gil, I'm sorry." Brass said solemnly.

"It's a little fucking late for that!" Grissom said as he stormed into the lab to search for Sara.

Grissom searched every possible place he could think of, but he couldn't find her. He tried her cell phone even though he knew she wouldn't answer it. Finally he gave up looking and stormed to his office. The entire lab kept their noses buried in their work when they saw him storming around. He slammed the door so hard behind him the glass shattered.

"Son of a bitch!" Grissom yelled.

Catherine stood at the far end of the hallway watching him. Nick approached her as she stared at Grissom's office.

"Hey, Cath, have you seen Griss, I need to ask him a question?"

"Now's not a good time Nicky. He's in a very bad mood."

"I'll let Warrick and Greg know." Nick said as he continued to go about his business.

Catherine sucked in a breath and began to make the walk to his office. She tried to avoid the broken glass as she opened the door.

"Go away Catherine." Grissom quickly shot out.

"No." She said simply.

"This is not your concern, so I don't want to hear it."

She sat down in front of his desk thankful it was there between them. "Well I'm going to talk." Grissom sighed and tried to continue working as Catherine continued. "Let her calm down before you try to explain what happened. Brass said it was all Heather. Gil, people make mistakes, it was just a little kiss. Did you kiss her back?"

Grissom shook his head without looking up, he was afraid to open his mouth afraid as his anger peaked.

"Gil, you're exhausted, you've been working very hard these past few weeks, and I don't mean to pry, but Sara said you guys still can't get pregnant." Grissom raised his head to bore his laser blue eyes into Catherine. "Stop and look at what's in front of you, not here at the lab, but at home because that's what matters." Catherine stood and left.

Grissom continued to stare into the space Catherine once occupied. In an instant he decided to head home.

Sara arrived home and went directly into the bedroom. She couldn't stop the tears from streaking her face as she recalled the words Brass said to Grissom. A knock came at the door and she tried to calm herself.

"Come in."

Jason slowly opened the door and crept in. "Are you ok?"

"I will be." Sara said simply trying to hide her tears.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"It's just one of those things that couples go through."

"Did you and Gil have a fight?" Jason asked calmly.

"No, it was just a misunderstanding." Sara said as Jason sat on the bed next to her.

"I'm sorry. The only thing I can say is that I hope you can work this out, because you two are the best parents I have ever had."

Tears reformed in Sara's eyes at Jason's confession. She leaned over and hugged him. "Thank you." she said as he hugged her back.

Jason stood and left Sara sitting in the bed. He was walking to the stairs and noticed Grissom sitting on the couch nursing a glass of scotch in the dark. With a sigh Jason continued on his trek towards his room.

Grissom watched Jason as he emerged from the hall, and go upstairs. He knew that Jason had been talking to Sara. After a moment he looked back to his drink and decided it was now or never.

Sara was preparing to take a shower when she heard a knock at the bedroom door. She was expecting Jason, so she put on her robe and opened the door to see Grissom standing there.

"You don't need to knock to come into your own bedroom." She said coldly.

"Sara, all I can say is I'm sorry. I was emotionally tired and vulnerable, and she knew it. She didn't know we were married. I didn't kiss her back, but I didn't stop her either." Sara turned and walked back to the bathroom as Grissom shut the door and followed her. "Sara, please listen." She stopped before walking through the bathroom door. "What do you want to know?"

Sara turned to face him. "Why?"

Grissom hung his head. "I don't know why."

"Unacceptable."

"Sara, I love you. I don't love Heather. She's just a friend." he paused thinking of what to say next. "I made a mistake. I should have stopped her, but I didn't. I don't know why, I was so tired that I didn't realize what was happening until it was too late. All I can do is ask you to forgive me. I would never be unfaithful to you, I love you too much." Grissom dropped to his knees and placed his hands on her waist and drew her closer. He placed his forehead against her flat stomach.

Sara's hands held his head against her as her tears fell once again as her emotions got the best of her. "I forgive you." she choked out though her tears.

Grissom looked up, his eyes filled with tears of their own. He slowly undid the front of her robe and kissed her stomach. Sara let out a small giggle and he looked back up to her.

"You haven't shaved in a few days and it tickles."

Grissom smiled and pulled her robe open to completely expose her to him. He stood and cupped her face with his hands. "I love you." He then leaned in and kissed her with all of the love and passion that he possessed for her.

Sara wrapped her arms around him as she let him guide her to their bed. She slowly undressed him as he kissed her neck. Grissom pushed the robe off her shoulders and let it fall to the floor. He laid her down on the bed and settled himself gently on top of her. Her eyes remained closed as he kissed her from her collar bone to her mouth.

"Look into my eyes." He said softly.

She opened them and saw the red fire of his passion behind the blue. Grissom slowly entered her and the sensation was too much for Sara as her head fell back against the pillow and her mouth let out a pleasurable moan. He slowly made love to her drawing out their passion and pleasure until it was just too much for either of them, and they released themselves. They drifted to sleep and remained wrapped in each others arms until the morning light tried to pry into the room.

* * *

Well there we have it. I'm getting a lot of people wanting to know when Sara gets preggers. Well, all I have to say is, CHILL OUT. Just be patient and review, cause I like them

TDCSI


	13. Chapter 13

Ok, here it is, the chapter so many of you have been pestering me about. Thanks to Just Thinking for the beta work, and thegreatbluespoon, she harasses me to no end, but I need it. And if you were watching the NCAA basketball games, you would have saw the promo on the minature killer. Damn, CBS is pissing me off. Oh, and go Georgetown.

* * *

Teens & Tribulations

Chapter 13

Grissom sat in front of the large bay window looking over the ivory pieces in front of him. After he had arrivedhome, Jason had asked him about the chess set that sat unused in the other room, so they started a game. Jason would reach for a piece to make a move then decide to make a different move. Grissom smiled as he tried to make it easy on him, but soon realized that Jason knew how to play chess. So he began to take control of the game.

Jason reached for another piece. "Are you sure you want to move that one?" Grissom asked.

Jason scanned the board before setting the piece back down. He moved another piece and sat back. Grissom smiled and picked up his queen and moved the piece.

"Check mate." Grissom said.

Jason sat up and scoured the board to make sure he was right.

"Fine you win." He said defeated.

"You'll win with more practice."

Just then they heard the front door open and Grissom stood quickly to see who had just walked into the house at midnight.

"Sara, what are you..." He didn't get to finish asking her as she headed to their room with her hand in the air. "Jason why don't you go to bed, it's late. We'll play another time."

"Ok. Goodnight."

"Night." Grissom said as he followed to where Sara went.

He glanced in the bedroom but didn't see her. "Sara." he called out.

The door to the bathroom opened and Sara emerged.

"Why are you home?" He asked.

"Catherine sent me home." She replied.

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I just had a queasy feeling and I guess she didn't want a repeat performance, so she sent me home. I'm fine, you need to call her and tell her I'm perfectly fine."

Grissom sighed. "No. You need a break as much as I do. And I don't want a repeat performance either. You scared the life out of me that night."

Sara grinned. "Compromise?"

Grissom inclined his head. "If you stay, I'll stay."

"Deal." Sara nodded and stood next to the bathroom door and with no regards to Grissom, stripped down naked and slid under the covers. "Are you coming to bed?"

He was still amazed at how she could render his body captive by just undressing. "Yeah."

Grissom stripped down and slid under the covers up next to Sara. She reached down on him, and smiled when she heard his breath hitch.

"Mmmm. What do you want?" He asked.

"What do you think I want?" She said smiling at his reaction to her manipulations on him.

Grissom's mouth fell open as he let his eyes close and his head fall back. "God Sara."

She pushed him onto his back and moved to straddle him. His hands instantly went to her hips as she lowered herself onto him. The air left their lungs as Grissom filled her. They came quickly and Sara fell asleep on top of Grissom as he held her and drifted off himself.

The sun prying through the blinds was enough to wake him. Grissom rolled over and sat up when his legs came in contact with a solid form at the foot of the bed.

"What are you doing Sara?" He was still trying to wake up as she turned to look at him.

With a smile she turned to crawl up the bed and lay beside him. "I think there's a chance I might be pregnant."

Grissom's eyes lit up. "Really?"

She nodded, "After last night, witch wasn't the first night I was sick." She held up her hand to stop the comment she knew was coming. "I know, I know, I should have told you but, at first I thought it was just the stress doing it. So I went out this morning at picked up a test."

"And?"

"I haven't looked yet. I thought you might want to come with me."

He smiled and quickly climbed out of bed. Sara tossed his shorts at him giggling. Grissom was less than amused as he took her hand and let her lead him into the bathroom. Sara grabbed the stick as she passed to sit on the side of the tub. Grissom sat next to her softly stroking her hand.

"Are you going to look at it or, just try to use esp."

Sara narrowed her eyes at him and moved her hand to reveal the results. Grissom leaned over to see himself. A large smile crossed his face as the pink plus sign was more than evident. He turned to place a gentle kiss on her cheek as she let her tears of joy fall. After God knows how long, she was finally pregnant.

"I need to make a doctor's appointment. She wanted to see me right away if I thought I might be pregnant." she sniffled.

"I hope these are tears of joy?"

"Are you kidding? I'm way more than overjoyed, I'm ecstatic, I just don't know how to express my self."

"We need to talk to Jason and Kassie about this."

Sara smiled, "I already know Kassie will be more than excited. She's been talking about how she would be a good big sister."

After Grissom dressed they wandered out into the living room. For a Saturday it was quiet, usually Jason and Kassie were running rampant. They heard them in the back yard, running amuck. Both of them dreaded when the weather turned cold enough to keep them inside.

Jason was tossing a baseball into the air and catching it, Kassie was digging in the dirt. Grissom and Sara sat down on the back steps and called out to get their attention, Jason and Kassie made their way over to them.

"Good morning." Jason said enthusiastically.

Grissom unconsciously checked his watch. "We need to ask you guys something." He paused to make sure that he had their complete attention. "How would you two feel about having a little brother or sister?"

"Seriously?" Jason exclaimed.

"Seriously." Sara responded.

"Does that mean I get to be a big sister?" Kassie asked.

"Yes, you get to be a big sister." Sara told her.

"Yeah! I get to be a big sister."

"Yeah well, just remember I'm the big brother."

She turned and stuck her tongue out at Jason when Sara remembered about the doctor.

Grissom watched as she stood to make the necessary call. He turned back to Jason and Kassie. "So what do you guys think?"

They both smiled at him.

"Well, I sent in the petition to the judge to finalize your adoption yesterday. So if you are not comfortable with any of this..." He didn't get to finish as both of them rushed over and hugged him.

"Does that mean we get to live here all the time?" Kassie asked.

Grissom smiled. "Yes."

Sara was able to get an appointment for the early afternoon, it didn't take her long and she was home in a little more than an hour. Kassie was sitting at the table with Grissom. He was teaching her the alphabet, while Jason was working on his homework periodically asking Grissom a question. Sara joined them at the table.

Grissom noticed the look on her face. He stood and moved over to her and gently took her hand. "Come on, let'stalk."

He led them to the den, her sanctuary, and sat down together on the small love seat. Grissom held her close caressing her arms being supportive until she was ready to talk.

She took in several deep breaths willing herself to tell him what she was told. "I have to be on hormone supplements because my FSH test came back low. So I have to have shots every day for the first month, and go in once a week to have more blood drawn."

Grissom turned his body to face her. "But you are pregnant right?"

Sara nodded. "But she's considering me a high risk pregnancy." Her voice cracked and Grissom pulled her into his arms. "In order for me to carry this baby to term I'm going to have to watch my stress, take these hormones, eat right, and she said most importantly watch the things at the lab."

Grissom sighed. "Shhh. Everything will be alright." He did his best to comfort her.

"She said once we get to the end of the first trimester, everything should go smoothly." She looked up at him. "Can I ask you a favor?"

"Anything."

"I can't give myself shots."

Grissom smiled. "I'll give them to you."

Once she had calmed down they went back to join Kassie and Jason.

"We haven't eaten anything, so why don't we go out for lunch?" Grissom suggested.

"Yeah." Jason and Kassie said enthusiastically.

"Can Lindsey come?" Jason asked.

Sara and Grissom shrugged their shoulders. "I don't see why not." Sara told him.

Jason got up and went to the phone to call Lindsey. Sara helped Kassie gather her things when Jason yelled from the other room.

"Dad, Lindsey's mom wants to talk to you."

Grissom looked at Sara and she looked back at him. He walked into the other room still with the confusedlook on his face as Jason handed him the receiver.

"Thanks. Hello Catherine."

"Did he just call you Dad?" Catherine asked.

"Yeah, he did."

"You sound confused about it."

"Well, I've never been 'Dad' before."

"Well, get used to it. Anyways, Lindsey and I are going to lunch over at Sam's, do you want to join us?"

"Which one?"

"The little restaurant in the Tangiers. They have a lunch buffet special on Saturdays."

Grissom paused for a moment. "Sure, we'll meet you there." He hung up the phone still in shock over the fact that Jason had called him Dad. He walked back to rejoin them. "We're going with Catherine and Lindsey."

"Yes." Jason let out under his breath.

"Let's go, get in the truck." Sara said herding the two.

Grissom followed her to the garage as Kassie and Jason climbed into the truck. "Seat belts." he ordered as his climbed in behind the wheel.

They arrived at the casino and pulled up to the valet parking right after Catherine and Lindsey. Jason was at Lindsey's side the minute he got out of the truck. Sara took Kassie by the hand and approached Catherine while Grissom gave the valet the once over about if something were to happen to the truck while they were inside.

"What's he doing?" Catherine asked.

"Oh, basically he's telling the poor valet that if the truck gets scratched, he's going to have his ass." Sara said while giggling.

Grissom joined them and they walked inside, Jason and Lindsey followed holding hands. They were shown to a large booth and went to fill their plates at the buffet.

Grissom sat next to Sara who had Kassie pinned to the inside of the booth. Catherine sat on the other side with Lindsey and Jason sitting to the inside.

"Did you enjoy your night off?" Catherine asked.

Grissom gave a half smile and looked up from his food. "Yes, I did."

"Good. And I see you're feeling better today."

Sara also smiled. "Yes. It was just a bug I guess."

Jason and Lindsey weren't paying attention to the adults conversation, they were too involved with their own little whispering talk.

"Ohh, ohh. Guess what? Guess what?" Kassie said enthusiastically.

"Kassie." Grissom warned.

"Can't I tell?Pleeeeease." She pleaded with him.

"Go ahead." Sara said.

"I'm going to be a big sister." Kassie said proudly.

"What do you mean big sister? Aren't you the little..?"Catherine stopped and looked to Sara with her mouth agape. "Are you...?"

Sara smiled. "It was reverse morning sickness."

"Oh my God. Congratulations." Catherine said as she tried to hug Sara from across the table. She stood to hug Grissom while he was still sitting.

"Thanks Cath," Grissomsaid less enthusiastically than she was.

"Well, you know everyone at the lab is going to be more than willing to do their part. I just can't believe this. I get to be an aunt." Catherine exclaimed.

Grissom and Sara were happy knowing that they had support from their friends.

They returned home later after having their fill of food and conversation. It nearlytook an act of congress to get Jason in the truck. He wanted to go back to Catherine's for the rest of the day. But since both Catherine and Grissom were working that night, neither thought it would be a good idea.

Sara spent the afternoon with Kassie and Jason went into his room. She thought it was odd, even for him but ignored it. Sara read to Kassie and colored with her until she saw Jason come down the stairs carrying several hand towels. She noticed he had also changed clothes. When he went back up to his room, Sara went into the laundry room and fished out the towels. Jason had buried them in the bottom of the hamper. Curiosity got the best of Sara and she went out into the garage to retrieve Grissom's field kit.

She pulled out his ALS light and ran it over the towels. Sara smiled when she found what she thought she was going to find. She replaced the towels and field kit, and headed to the bedroom. Grissom was asleep and she hated to wake him, so she decided to wait until later to talk.

* * *

Well I hope this settles some folks down. Yup, Sara's finally pregnant. But, now what's next, oh so many options. Review, I'm open to ideas as to where this should go, even though I have an idea already, but I'm more than willing to incorporate new ideas.

TDCSI


	14. Chapter 14

Ok, this is for you Kakidoll. I'm attempting to post three times a week. Whoops, I've already failed. How about two times a week? Can you live with that. For every one who has been reading and reviewing this, thank you. A huge thank you to Just Thinking, for the advice on raising kids (even thou I'm never having any). And I can't leave out thegreatbluespoon, if you miss tonights episode, and try to blame it on drunken people, I'm driving north at a high rate of speed to personally kick your ass. Whew, I feel better, enjoy chapter 14.

* * *

Teens & Tribulations

Chapter 14

As usual Grissom went to work early and Sara arrived just before the start of shift. She walked into the break room and was greeted with huge smiles from everyone.

"Catherine."

"I'm sorry Sara. I couldn't help it, you know me."

"So, it's true. We're going to be uncles?" Greg asked enthusiastically.

She shifted her weight and smiled. "Yes Greg. You are all going to be uncles."

They were all gathered around her when Grissom walked in. "What's going on in here?"

"Hey, congratulations Dad." Warrick exclaimed.

Grissom smiled and stood up straight showing his pride. "Thank you."

After he handed out assignments, Grissom retreated to the confinesof his office. Sara followed.

"Gil?"

"Yeah."

She shut the door and closed the blinds. Grissom eyed her as she moved about.

"I forgot to have you give me my shot before you left. Can you give it to me now?"

"Sure." He replied with a smile.

Sara fished out a syringe and handed it to him. She undid the buttons on her jeans and slid them down on one side to expose her hip. His eye brows instantly rose. "I need it in the hip." She placed her hands on his desk and leaned over.

Grissom just smiled and took the cap off of the needle.

"Hey Sara..." the door opened. "...Oh. Am I interrupting something?" Catherine asked with a huge grin on her face.

Sara looked at Catherine, her face was beet red. "No, I just need to get my...Ow!"

"Sorry." Grissom said as he stuck her with the needle and injected the solution.

"I'll be waiting outside." Catherine said as she left.

Sara turned back to Grissom. "Damn, did you have to stick me that hard?"

"I wanted to make sure I injected it deep enough." He replied with a smirk.

"Right." She stood and redid her pants, and rubbed the point of injection through her jeans. "It's going to ache all night now."

"Glad I could be of service."

She smiled sarcastically at him and left.

The night went smoothly which relived Grissom. He suddenly had this profound desire to protect Sara in a way he had never felt before. He was deep in thought and barely heard Catherine's attempt to get his attention.

"Hey, Jack Handy. Penny for your thoughts?"

Grissom looked at her. "I was just thinking."

"And by the looks of your desk, that's all you have been doing."

He looked at the stack of files that had been there since shift started. "I guess I've had other things on my mind."

"Yeah. And I know what those other things are." She smiled, grabbed a file, and sat down. "Come on, Dad, I'll help you get through these."

"Thank you."

The two of them sat for two hours thumbing through the files, but with her help Grissom was able to get them all done. They chatted about little things while working. It was something he had not done with her for years. She used to join him after shift on several occasions for a nightcap and breakfast. He knew she was a true friend and would be there at a moment's notice to help him and his newly formed family, and he felt the same for her.

Sara was sitting on the couch in her pajamas reading when he arrived at home. Grissom looked around at his surroundings for a moment then moved to sit next to her, keeping his stare straight ahead.

He let out a sigh. "You know I was just thinking, our friends don't even know where we live. Well, I mean they know, but they are our extended family you could say, and they haven't even seen where we live."

Sara scooted over to snuggle next to him. Grissom turned his head and kissed her hair as she placed her head on his shoulder.

"Why are you having these deep thoughts all of a sudden?"

He let out another sigh. "I don't know. I guess it's something that Catherine said to me a long time ago. That people were making a family around me whether I like it or not. Now I'm making a family, and I'm shutting everyone else out."

"So, let's have a little get together one day. Invite the team over for a drink or something."

"I don't know if I like the idea of a bunch of people in the house."

"Gil..." She sat up straight and pulled him to look at her. "...You just admitted that they were like our family. You know these people better than they know themselves, but they hardly know you. It's not going to hurt to expose yourself a little to the people you care about."

She held his face but he adverted his eyes to the floor.

"I don't know what to think anymore." He said quietly.

Sara sat back for a second. "This isn't some kind of mid-life crisis is it? Cause if it is, you sure picked a hell of a time to have one."

"This isn't a mid-life crisis Sara."

"Sounds like it to me."

Grissom's eyes narrowed at her bluntness. "It's just that we are going through some big changes."

"And you don't think you can handle these changes?" She interrupted.

He paused not knowing if she was right. Not knowing what was right.

"Look Gil, I love you. Jason and Kassie adore you. You have been more of a father to them then they ever had." She took his hand and placed it on her stomach. "And this baby will love you too. I'm happy. Are you?"

The question hung in the air as his hand remained on her. He looked at his hand as it rested on her stomach, and struggled to swallow the knot in his throat. His brain told him that it was just a cluster of cells dividing over and over. But his heart told him that it was his child. It was a part of him and Sara that came together to create a new life. He raised his head and looked at her.

"Yes. I'm happy."

"Then why are you questioning your place in life now?" Sara inquired.

"I guess it's just that things are happening so fast. I just need a little time to sort through it all." He looked into her eyes and saw concern. "Sara, just please give me some time to absorb everything." She smiled and nodded her acceptance of his confusion. After all, he still was Grissom. "Oh, and before I forget, we have a court date in a week."

She gave a puzzled look. "For what?"

"We are petitioning the judge for the adoption of Jason and Kassie."

Sara looked surprised. "You sent that in?"

He nodded. "A while ago. It was something that I needed to do."

"Thank you." She said as she moved to embrace him.

* * *

They slept peacefully until that dreaded clock struck three thirty, then like clockwork, the front door opened. Both of them tried to ignore the offending noise but it soon escalated to a point where one of them needed to intervene. 

"Shut up Kassie!" Jason screamed.

"No, you shut up. Jason and Lindsey sittin' in a tree, k-i-s-s-i-n-g." Kassie chanted.

"Shut it!"

Sara rolled over and pulled the blanket over her head, indicating to Grissom the she wanted him to deal with it. He grunted his thanks as he climbed out of bed and slipped into his robe. It was the last thing that Grissom wanted to deal with right now, but he was afraid that there would soon be blood shed.

"Jason loves Lindsey, Jason loves Lindsey!" Kassie repeated as she ran around the living room trying to escape Jason as he chased her.

But he was quicker than her, and with a skilled leap over the couch he had her in his grasp. She screamed as if a predator had pounced on her, as he pulled her back into the couch. Kassie continued to scream as Jason was yelling at her to shut up.

"Why don't you both shut up!" Grissom yelled over the screams.

Jason rose off of Kassie and they both fell silent. She struggled off the couch and began her chant as she ran for the stairs. Jason started chasing her again as Grissom caught her by the arm halting her escape. He held out his arm stopping Jason in his tracks.

"Kassie, stop." Grissom said sternly. "Go to your room." He let her go and she continued chanting quietly with each step.

"Aren't you going to make her stop?" Jason protested.

"Sit down." Grissom pointed to the couch.

Jason stood firm in front of Grissom, crosssing his arms showing his demand for justice.

"NOW!"

At the escalation of the older man's voice, Jason suddenly felt as if he was four inches tall and quickly moved over to sit down. Grissom sat on the coffee table in front of him.

"Jason, you need to learn to ignore your sister. I understand that before you guys never had this much freedom. I'm sorry for that, but I don't see the harm in having a little fun."

"She's been chanting that on the bus the whole way home, just because I sit with my girlfriend." Jason let his voice rise with his anger.

Grissom's eyebrows rose with this newfound information. "Girlfriend?"

Jason let his head drop as he realized he might have said too much.

"Jason, Kassie's five, she's just trying to get a rise out of you and it's obviously working. You need to just ignore her. And as for this thing with Lindsey. We need to talk." Jason looked up. "Man to man."

Jason spoke quietly, "The towels?" Grissom nodded. "I'm sorry."

Grissom took a deep breath. How in the hell was he going to explain that masturbating was a normal thing? He couldn't count how many times in his life, let alone the years leading up to his and Sara's relationship that he jerked off, and he was a grown man.

"It's nothing to apologize for. It's a normal male response to stimulus. Because of your age the stimulus only has to be minor, like..." He paused trying to think of a way to word it. "...when you wake up in the morning and you realize that your bed is...ah...wet. Right?"

Jason could only nod.

Grissom took another deep breath. Damn this was hard. He hoped Sara was going to have a girl, because if he had to do this twice he would surely go insane. "Well that's normal too, for a male your age. You're not the only one that it happens to."

Jason looked up. "Did it happen to you?"

Grissom suddenly felt hot, yet he was barely dressed. He could only nod. "Again, it's caused by stimulus. It will pass, as you get older. As for the...uh... towels, that's normal too. For any male, regardless of age, it's normal, and not something that should be condemned." He paused wondering if he had said enough to get his point across, 'cause God knows if this was going to go into details, Grissom didn't know what to tell the teen. "Are you getting what I'm saying?"

"I think so."

He eyed Jason's facial expression thinking that he had not conveyed the point across very clearly, but enough to where it made sense to him.

Jason looked up at Grissom. "Have you ever...you know?"

Grissom looked at him knowing exactly what he was asking, but he didn't want to disclose that kind of information to him. So he decided to play stupid. "Have I what?"

"You know?" Jason moved his head slightly side to side to indicate his nervousness at the question.

"I guess I'm not sure what you are asking?"

"Yes, you do." They both looked over to see Sara standing at the edge of where the hall connected with the living room. "Stop playing dumb. He wants to know if you ever..." She paused looking for the appropriate slang term. "...choked the chicken?"

Jason smiled knowing that Sara got it.

Grissom looked at her stunned. "Choked the chicken?"

"It's a slang term for masturbate. You know, like jerk off, spank the monkey, jerkin' the gherkin..."

Grissom raised his hand interrupting her. "I get it."

"So answer the poor boy's question." She finished with a smile and remained at her post. She had to hear this.

Grissom turned back to Jason, but the feeling of Sara's eye's boring into his back was too much. "Are you going to stand there and eavesdrop?"

"If I was eavesdropping I would be unseen. I'm just waiting to hear your answer."

Grissom looked at his feet. Maybe the answer was down there. Not that far down, but in the same direction. He released the air he was holding and looked up at Jason.

"It's a normal action for any male."

"Yes or no?"Sara pushed.

"Why don't you tell him?" Grissom shot back.

"Fine." Sara said plainly and moved to sit next to Grissom. She put her hand on his leg as she continued. "I'll let you in on a little secret. Well, it's not much of a secret. Every woman knows that men masturbate. It's normal from puberty to the time you die."

Grissom turned red in the face and refused to look at either of them.

"Yes, Gil has masturbated before, and I'm sure he will in the future."

Now he was feeling like he had been dropped straight into hell as his body temperature continued to rise. Yet somehow he couldn't form words to stop this embarrassing conversation that Sara was exposing.

"In fact, I would be concerned if he didn't. On a biological sense, it's the body's way of expelling old mature sperm cells so that newer mature ones are first in line to be expelled to fertilize the egg."

Grissom couldn't believe he was hearing what he was. 'Please God, take away my hearing for the next day only.'

"And in your case, you are still developing these cells and it's just your body's way of getting ready for full maturity."

Jason was listening to Sara while Grissom was silently praying he could be struck down by lighting. It was 'the' most embarrassing situation he had been in, in his entire life. She was talking about his sex life with a thirteen year old.

"So, do you understand now?"

Jason nodded.

"Ok. But just remember; keep your distance when it comes to Lindsey. Catherine can and will kill you. Little stuff like holding hands, and kisses on the cheek is fine. Just don't think you need to have sex to grow up."

Again Jason nodded.

"Now, homework?"

He smiled and headed up to his room. Sara looked over at Grissom, who was still beet red and staring at the floor.

"I think that went well, don't you?" she asked.

He looked up at her. "At my expense."

"Well now he understands that he's not the only man in the world that does it, or even in this house." She gave him a quick kiss and left him sitting there as she headed for the shower.

* * *

I got lots of happy reviews last chapter because Sara was finally pregnant. And I know you are smiling after trying to picture Grissom talking to Jason. So, review and let me know if it made you smile or even laugh. I'm not the comedian thegreatbluespoon is, but I can be funny too. 


	15. Chapter 15

Ok, so I failed at updateing twice a week. Sue me. Anyways, I only have a month left of school before finals, that and I'm WAY behind on writing. So please stick with me here. Thanks to Just Thinking. She's the one who rode my ass for skipping the holidays, so I backed up to cover them over the next two chapters. And thanks to my frequently absent, thegreatbluespoon, and for the bombshell you dropped on me this morning. Thanks Jess, like I needed to be freaking out.

* * *

Teens & Tribulations

Chapter 15

It didn't take long to settle into the routine of juggling work and the kids going to school. Sara would try to get home in time to take them, but on more than one occasion she didn't make it. Jason would then stepup to make sure Kassie was ready and escorted her to the bus. Summer faded in to fall and with that camel ittle Kassie's birthday.

Sara got together with Catherine to organize a party. They decided that it was a sure bet that she hadn't had a celebration, let alone an all out party. It didn't take them long to geteverything ready.

Grissom was getting ready to head home to shower before they went to Catherine's, when his email chimed at him. He pondered walking out without checking it, but a quick glance wouldn't hurt. Grissom opened the message and instantly regretted it. Ecklie had sent the message, saying that the sheriff wanted him to help another law enforcement agency in Arizona, with insect analysis. And he needed to do it that night.

Grissom made a disgusted growl as he left his office thumbing through the phone book on his cell phone to contact the sheriff.

He made it home in a sour mood that radiated off of him as he walked through the house. Sara was getting Kassie ready when he walked by. She could tell by his posture that something was wrong. After she filled Kassie with more fibs of where they were really going, she went to confront Grissom.

The shower was running and she heard him cursing Ecklie and knew that work had interfered. Sara just laid out some clean clothes for him and sat patiently on the bed for him to finish.

Grissom walked into the bedroom clad in only a towel, he was greeted by Sara's disappointed look. "Honey, I'm..." He paused not knowing what to say but, it was obvious by the look on her face that she knew work had interfered.

"Don't worry."

He sat down next to her. "I'm still going but, I'll have to leave early. Something per the sheriff and I can't get out of it." his tone faded as he let his disappointment show.

Sara took his hand giving him the assurance that she understood.

She drove Jason and Kassie in the truck, while Grissom followed in the Denali. Sara explained to them why Grissom was going to be leaving early. It broke her heart to watch Kassie's eye's well up as she tried not to cry. Her tears fell anyway.

When they reached Catherine's house, Kassie refused to get out of the truck. Sara didn't want to tell her the real reason why she needed to get out, so Grissom tried to get her out.

"Come on, we're going to have fun. I'm sorry that I'm going to have to leave early, but I'm here now. If you get out now then I will be here longer." He thought it would be easy to con a five-year-old, he was sadly mistaken.

"No, you're just going to leave anyway," Kassie pouted.

"I'm sorry sweetie, I really am. Look I'll make you a deal, if you get out now and be a good girl, I'll take you out for ice cream when I get back."

Kassie shook her head so fast that the braids in her hair whipped around. "I don't want ice cream later."

Grissom sighed in near defeat. How could a man of his intelligence fail to pry a small child from her car seat? Then it hit him. "If you get out, when I get back, we'll go to a pet store and you can pick out some fish. Would you like an aquarium?"

Her eyes lit up. "Really? I can have fishes?"

"Yes, but only if you get out and be a good girl."

She was out of her seat and into his arms before he could blink. Grissom carried her into the house and was greeted by several of his co-workers.

"Happy Birthday Kassie." they all exclaimed at once.

Her eyes lit up and she struggled for Grissom to put her down. She ran over to the stack of presents. "Are these for me?"

"Yes, they are. And we have cake and ice cream." Catherine told her.

"Tell everyone how old you are." Sara instructed.

Kassie stood up proudly. "I'm six." she said holding up her hands to reveal six fingers.

Even though she had never had a party before, Grissom and Sara decided that it must be programmed into every child's DNA to savagely rip off wrapping paper to get to the item inside. She received several books that would help her to learn to read, more coloring books and crayons, and Catherine got her a baby doll.

"That's so you can practice being a big sister."

"Wow, she's pretty." Kassie said while holding the doll close to her.

"What do you say to everyone?" Sara told her.

"Thank you."

"Your welcome." everyone spoke at once.

"Now for the good stuff." Catherine went to retrieve the cake.

With a sigh Grissom whispered to Sara. "I need to get going soon."

"Just wait until she blows out her candles. Please." She gave him her sad but hopeful face. How could he say no to that? So he nodded in agreement.

Catherine returned with the cake boasting six flaming candles. They sang Happy Birthday and when they finished Kassie just stared at the candles.

"Go ahead and blow them out." Sara told her.

It was obvious to everyone that she had never experienced any of this before and, it made their hearts ache.

She blew out the candles receiving an applause from the group. Grissom leaned over and hugged her.

"I have to go now."

"No!" she said grabbing on to him as he stood up forcing him to pick her up.

Sara quietly explained why he had to leave as Kassie began crying on his shoulder.

"Hey, remember out deal. You have to be a big girl." While she sniffled he felt her nod against his shoulder. "I'll be back in the morning."

She pulled back to look at him. "Then we'll go look at the fishes?"

"Then we'll go look at fishes."

Kassie leaned back into him and he hugged her back before setting her down.

After the cake and ice cream was devoured, the guests left leaving Catherine, Sara, Jason, Lindsey, and Kassie. Jason and Lindsey helped with the clean up but soon disappeared. Kassie started coloring and talking to her new doll about being a big sister, while Catherine nursed a cup of coffee and Sara was drinking water. After an hour of small talk Sara gathered her crew and took them home.

Grissom made it home in the middle of the night and was able to sleep a few hours before Kassie bounded into his room. She threw herself onto the bed and just stared at him as he opened his eyes from the sudden disturbance.

"What?" His voice was heavy with sleep. He had been awake for more than twenty four hours and was grateful for the few hours he had received.

"Fishes, remember?"

"I remember. What time is it?" he asked more to himself as he pulled the covers back enough so he could see the clock. It read seven thirty. "Sweetie, it's Sunday. I don't think the pet stores open until after ten."

She looked at him sticking out her bottom lip.

"We're still going, but I need some more rest. Come back in at ten and then we'll go, ok?"

Her pout turned into a huge grin and she climbed out of the bed.

With unbelievable accuracy, Kassie returned at the stroke of ten to wake him back up. He was so tired, he never felt Sara climb into bed whenever she had gotten home from the lab. Grissom grunted and moaned as he forced his body to get out of bed.

They spent several hours at the pet store and with some convincing, the only thing they purchased was the aquarium. Jason helped her put it together. Well, he put it together while she watched. Grissom had to go back to bed as he felt his body shut down from exhaustion.

After a few days of running the aquarium without fish in it, Kassie picked out the fish she wanted and with the help of Jason, they thrived in the tank. She was only allowed to feed them with the help of someone to ensure she didn't over feed them.

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When the next week rolled around the only thing on the kids'minds was trick or treating. After a short pleading period and Jason telling them that they were never allowed to, Sara had Grissom convinced to let them go. He was against the idea because to him, that's when all of the crazies came out. 

Sara took them to get costumes and on the night of the 31st, she helped them get ready. They were going along with another boy that Jason had befriended at school, Dirk Thompson. He sat next to Lindsey, she was dressed up as a princess, and he was a pirate. Sara helped Kassie get into a Cinderella costume.

"I was Cinderella when I was little." Lindsey recalled. "How much longer is Jason going to be?"

Just as she finished they turned when they heard voices echoing down the hall.

"Why did we have to do that in the basement?"

Grissom let out a chuckle. "Because Al, we needed our privacy to reconstruct him." Dr. Al Robbins followed Grissom into the living room.

"Where's Jason?" Lindsey asked impatiently.

"Come on out." Grissom called to him.

Jason walked into the room and everyone gave out a small grotesque sound. "Well how do I look?"

Lindsey was just staring at him with her mouth agape. Dirkwas the onlyone who responded in a positive form. "Cool!"

"What are you?" Sara asked.

Grissom looked at Sara sideways. "What does he look like?" He and Al were taking pride in their make up job.

"He looks like he's dead."

"Actually, he's a two week old decomposing body."

"Complete with the bugs." Jason said pointing out the small beetles on his arms and neck.

"Alright let's get going everyone." Sara said herding everyone towards the door. "I'll see you later." she said before giving Grissom a peck on the lips.

She was the one elected to escort them around the neighborhood, mostly for Kassie's sake. Sara knew nothing about trick or treating, but it didn't take long for Dirk and Lindsey to show Jason and Kassie how.

They always had Kassie in the front when ringing the door bell. Jason was the last one to get to the candy dish and nearly everyone that saw him would stare at him wide eyed after they had jumped ten feet in the air. Sara laughed at everyone's reaction to him and, she had to admit, he did look just like a corpse that had been laying in the woods for a few weeks.

They stayed out for as long as possible before Sara dragged them home. She designated Jason to look at Kassie's candy before she ate any, and to try and have her in bed by ten.

After they assured her that they had everything under control, with a few giggles, Sara left for the lab praying that the house would be in one piece when she returned.

Grissom was the first one home the next morning. He walked into the house as if it was any other morning. Only this wasn't any other morning, this was the morning after three teenagers had been trick or treating. After ten steps in he kicked an empty pop can. He furrowed his eye brows as he made his way towards the living room. The 'dead boy' was strung out over the recliner, a princess was sleeping peacefully on the couch, and there was a pirate sleeping on the coffee table.

Candy wrappers and several empty soda cans littered the floor, and the stereo was playing some music that in itself would give him a migraine. With a quick push of a button, the offending music was silenced. Grissom looked over the scene before him deciding it was wise to just close his eyes and walk away.

Sara followed suit several hours later and, she saw the exact same scene that Grissom had seen earlier. She quickly phoned Catherine that Lindsey was safe and sound, as she was freaking out because her daughter was not home when she got off. Sara gave a quick shake of her head and went to join Grissom.

After the Halloween fiasco, Thanksgiving was next on the agenda. Sara's belly expanded noticeably as the baby grew. Catherine had organized a dinner at her house.

Sara helped Catherine and her mother with the cooking, Grissom and the guys sat around drinking soda. That whole on call thing put a damper on the drinking, so they made due with what they had. Jason and Lindsey were tormenting Kassie outside, and after the third time of her running in the house crying, Sara put her to work in the kitchen with them.

They enjoyed the traditional turkey dinner, Sara even found herself taking a nibble of the roasted bird. Grissom watched in amazement as she tried to eat a piece without anyone noticing her but, he did. The cravings were too much for her and she could only resist for so long. As any Thanksgiving goes everyone ate too much. Sara ate more than anyone. She was even fingering food while Catherine was cleaning up.

Greg stretched out on the floor and quickly fell asleep, Nick and Warrick stretched out in the two recliners, both undoing their belts, a sure sign they ate too much. Grissom and Brass relaxed on the sofa and sipped on coffee. The kids went back outside to burn off dinner. After Catherine and her mother had put everything away, with Sara's help, pagers began to chime. Well at least they had a big meal to keep them nourished.

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Please review. I'll try to catch up on the writing, and if more people throw some ideas out there I might just use them and give you the credit. You don't count Jess.


	16. Chapter 16

Ok, so I know it's been like forever since I updated this, but all of last week I was without my dear asshat. Well, now she's back and I'm all happy again. I have 2 weeks of classes left before finals, so I'm getting like no writing done. Thanks to all who have reviewed, and to Just Thinking for all of her help. Merry Christmas.

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Teens & Tribulations

Chapter 16

The holiday season was upon them before they knew it, and for Sara and Grissom new trends and boundaries were about to be set. Jason and Lindsey continued to grow closer. Once Christmas vacation started they were together so much that it seemed like Lindsey was practically living with them.

She was there every day, and as for the nights both teens claimed that they would be fine by themselves. Catherine wasn't buying into it, Sara had her doubts, and Grissom, well he didn't have much to say when it came to decisions like that. Only one night was it approved because Dirk was also spending the night. That, and Grissom had the night off.

"Leave us alone."

"Why?"

"Because you're annoying. Now go!"

"Why?"

"Ahggg." Jason really hated his sister when she was being stubborn like this.

"Why?"

"SHUT UP!!"

The yelling brought Grissom up from the basement. "What's going on here?"

"Kassie's being retarded."

"Why?"

"Don't say that. Besides, you have no idea what the word retarded means." He turned to face his daughter, "Kassie, why don't you go upstairs and get ready for bed."

"Why?"

"Because I said so."

"Why?"

"One more 'why' comes out of your mouth and you'll be saying more than why." Grissom narrowed his eyes at her as he slapped the back of one hand into the palm of the other.

She pondered for a split second on giving it a go, but quickly decided to head up the stairs.

"Thank you." Jason said as the other two also thanked him for interfering and taking care of the disruptive child.

Grissom just smiled as they returned to their game of Pictionary, although he was positive that they were just drawing and trying to guess what the picture was. He decided that he would test Sara'seggnog while she wasn't there. She had made eggnog for the Christmas party last year, and he and the others enjoyed themselves immensely on it. He poured a small cup and went to return to the basement, the laughter coming out of the living room was intense and he paused to see Jason on the floor. He was laughing so hard, he was crying. Lindsey was holding her stomach as if it might burst, and Dirk was sitting with a very sincere look on his face.

Curiosity wasn't the word for wanting to know what caused such a ruckus, demanding was more like it. "What did you say?"

Dirk looked at Grissom. "I was trying to draw a picture of duct tape, and told them what was written on the bathroom wall at school." Grissom looked at him silently pleading him to reveal what had been so funny. "I said, Duct tape is like the force, there's a light side and a dark side, and it holds the universe together."

Grissom tilted his head and looked at him.

"Have you ever seen 'Star Wars'?"

"No."

"Then you wouldn't get it."

With a quick shake of his head Grissom returned to the basement.

After settling down Jason was able to sit up straight with only a fewremaining giggles to suppress him. "Hey, who's thirsty?"

Both Lindsey and Dirk gave their approval for a beverage break and followed Jason into the kitchen. "Aw man. We're out of soda."

"How about that eggnog?"Dirk asked pointing to the yellowish liquid in the glass pitcher.

"Sara made that for Christmas dinner. I don't think we should be drinking it."

"Come on Jason. Since when are you all cautious about doing something?" Lindsey challenged.

Jason reached in and pulled out the pitcher pouring each of them a glass.

Grissom spent all night downstairs working on things and was surprised that after only a few hours of loud laughter, the noise level dropped to nothing within minutes. He figured the teens had tired and passed out. Passed out yes, from exhaustion, no.

"What the...?" He looked over another shocking scene before him.

The pitcher that contained the eggnog was lying empty on the floor. Jason was unconscious on the coffee table, face up, well half on. Only his head and torso were miraculously on the solid oak table, while his feet were planted firmly on the floor. Dirk was sitting, no not sitting, he was upside down in the recliner. His head where feet go, and his feet on the head rest. And Lindsey, where was Lindsey?

Grissom began to look for her. After a thorough search of the first floor revealed nothing, panic began to set in. It was his first, no second night of watching the kids, and once again had screwed up. Even lost one. He headed upstairs and checked in on Kassie.

She was wide awake and playing with her doll, but she hadn't seenLindsey. Next he checked Jason's room. With a sigh of relief he found her.

Grissom walked up by her face to see if he could smell anything suspicious coming off of her breath.

"AHHH!"

Grissom jumped back ten feet as she screamed. He was convinced his heart had stopped beating for a few seconds.

"What are you doing?" she asked as she was trying to catch her breath.

"I...was seeing if you were...ah..." He flailed his hands around trying to explain.

"I only had a small glass when I realized that there was alcohol in it. The boys kept going."

"I'm sorry if I scared you."

"It's ok. Are they still downstairs?"

"Yeah. That's all they are."

Grissom gathered Kassie and took her downstairs to prepare breakfast. Lindsey helped while he tried to clean up before Sara got home. No such luck.

"What the hell?"

Grissom cringed when he heard her voice. Well into her second trimester, Sara had become very moody since Thanksgiving. Oh how he was dreading this explanation. "Good morning dear." He tried to soothe things over before she saw the empty pitcher.

"Don't good morning me. What in the name of all that is sane happened here?"

"Good morning. We made breakfast." Kassie announced proudly with Lindsey.

"That's good baby." Sara praised in a much nicer tone than the one she had shot Grissom. "Why don't you go back into the kitchen and I'll be there in a minute?"

Kassie just nodded and was escorted back by Lindsey.

"Well Gil? What on God's green earth happened to these boys?" She pointed at there unusually sleeping forms.

He thought of how to explain the situation, but decided to give, '...and the truth shall set you free' a try. "Well, they drank all the eggnog you made."

"You let them drink all of that!"

"Now hold on there..." He held up his hands to stop her and defend himself if need be. "They did this on their own accord. I was in the basement minding my own business."

"Did it ever occur to you that alcohol was readily sitting open in the fridge, and three teenagers were loose up here?"

"Well..."

"No." She answered for him.

He knew that there was no use in arguing with her as her hormones would always win out. Grissom dared not say another word. He learned his lesson well that things would only get worse from here if he tried to argue with her.

"You need to fix this." She said motioning her hand over the area of the living room.

"I will." It was a short and sincere answer, more important, it was enough to get her to back off. He continued to pick up a few misplaced items. "Hey." he said poking Jason.

"Huhhhh?" was all that emerged from his intoxicated lips.

"Get up."

Jason rolled to get up only to fall off of the coffee table landing on the floor with a thud. Dirk began to make incoherent noises and stir as well. Only he was having a hard time getting up.

Grissom pulled him to the floor. Neither seemed to be feeling any pain at the moment. "You guys are so in trouble, and you got me in trouble with your little stunt here."

He knew he was wasting his breath, because they were still too out of it to understand. There was only one cure he knew was fool proof. Grissom drug both bodies to the bath room and with a little shove, both teens were half sitting in the shower as he turned on the cold water and took a seat on the lid of the toilet.

After several minutes of the cold water running over their clothed bodies, Jason and Dirk began to quickly get their wits about them.

"It's cold." Jason exclaimed.

"It's supposed to be."

"Can I get out?" Dirk asked while trying to stand.

"I don't know, can you?" Grissom asked in return as he watched the two scramble out of the tub and fall to the floor. He reached over and shut the water off. "Take your clothes off."

Both teens looked at him shocked.

"Like it's a big deal if I see you two naked." Grissom grabbed Jason shirt and pulled it over his head. He soon had both of them standing in their birthday suits. "Here." Grissom handed both of them towels to dry off and cover up with.

He went to the kitchen to keep the girls occupied while the boys clung to their towels and made an attempt to climb the stairs.

"It's Christmas Eve tonight Santa comes." Sara was telling Kassie.

"Who's Santa?"

Even Lindsey had that look that combined shock and sorrow. Grissom moved in to help explain.

"Well, Santa Clause lives way up at the north pole. He haseight magic reindeer and elves that make the toys for the good children of the world."

"Really?" Her eyes lit up as she asked.

"Yes," Sara picked up, "He flies around the world on Christmas Eve and delivers toys."

"Wow."

Lindsey couldn't help herself. "What you need to do is leave a glass of milk and cookies next to the tree for Santa when he comes down the chimney. After flying around the world he gets hungry."

"He comes down the chimney?"

They all nodded at her.

"Wow. Don't make a fire tonight. I don't want to burn Santa." Kassie demanded.

"He only comes after you have gone to bed." Grissom informed her.

"Ok. I can do that."

"Did you clean up the bodies in the other room?" Sara asked quickly changing the subject.

Grissom looked over at her. "Yes, they are upstairs now."

Sara just gave him a half smile as she spread some jam on her toast. After a few minutes of silence, the not so subtle noise of Jason and Dirk coming down the stairs had them turning their heads to watch the boys enter the kitchen.

"My head hurts," Jason commented.

"Here." Grissom tossed a bottle of Tylenol at him.

Still out of it Jason made a poor attempt to catch it and failed miserably. Both took a few pills and stood next to Grissom. With a quick shake of his head, Grissom fixed them each a plate of scrambled eggs and toast. He didn't trust them to carry the plates themselves, so he took them to the dining room for both boys.

The rest of the day went by without a hitch. Grissom took Dirk home. "I want to explain to your parents what happend."

"I live with my Grandparents. My Mom and Dad were killed in a car accident nearly a year ago."

Grissom felt that suddenly familiar tug at his heart. Not everyone has had a fair shot in life, but to see a kids life turned upside down. Dirk got out and Grissom followed suit.

Jason spent the day under Sara's command. She had him cleaning every where she could think of, since they were hosting Christmas dinner. Kassie was coloring as usual and just enjoying listening to Sara order her brother around.

After dinner Grissom was getting ready to go to the lab, as only he, Warrick, and Nick were going to be there that night as part of the skeleton crew for Christmas Eve.

"You know, when I was little we got to open one present on Christmas Eve before bedtime. Why don't we do the same tonight?"

"Yeah!" Both Jason and Kassie exclaimed at Sara's suggestion.

Grissom just shrugged his shoulders. "I don't see where it would hurt."

Instantly Jason and Kassie flew to the tree that stood proudly in the corner. They each picked out one gift preparing to shred the paper that covered it.

"Stop!"

At the sound of Sara's voice their busy hands halted instantly.

"One at a time. Kassie, you go first." She sat on the couch and was soon joined by Grissom. They watched on proudly as she shredded the metallic colored wrapping paper in seconds.

The box that was under the paper slowed her down momentarily as she soon had it pried open as well. Once she made it to the prize inside, Kassie squealed as she pulled out a new pair of pink and white sneakers.

"Cool!"

Grissom gave his head a slight shake. It seemed that 'cool' was very high on the vocabulary of kids between the ages of five and sixteen.

"Try them on."

Kassie quickly began putting the shoes on her feet and tied them up all by herself. She stood and began to run around the living room claiming that she could run faster than before.

Jason was impatient and began ripping off the paper of his present. Grissom and Sara turned their attention to him as he also was slowed by the plain cardboard. After a little extra effort he was staring into the box. Jason looked up at Sara and Grissom and, mouthed a silent thank you. He slowly pulled out the chocolate brown leather bomber jacket and stood. With the largest smile one could produce, he swung the jacket over sliding his arms into the sleeves.

"So?" Sara asked.

Jason looked up. "I love it, but aren't these expensive?"

Grissom smiled. "There's nothing wrong with splurging every now and then, besides I think you two are worth it."

Once Jason and Kassie had settled down from their excitement, Grissom bid them a good night and left. Sara helped Kassie set out a glass of milk and cookies before she headed to bed. She relaxed on the couch and read past midnight.

Then she played Santa. Sara retrieved the other gifts that were stashed in her room, and placed them under the tree. She stuffed the stockings with little nick-nacks and candy and, as she passed the fire place, she couldn't help but eat the cookies and drink the milk before retiring to bed.

Grissom crept into the house just before dawn carrying a few choice gifts from his hiding place in the garage. He couldn't help but smile at the mountain of presents under the tree already.

After playing Santa, Grissom headed for the shower. He was quiet, trying not to wake Sara, but she always seemed to know when he was home. She greeted him as he opened the frosted glass door of the shower holding a towel.

"Merry Christmas."

She nodded. "Merry Christmas indeed."

Grissom smirked and snatched the towel from her. She laughed and headed to the living room.

Just as he emerged from the bedroom, the thundering upstairs gave him the indication that both kids were awake. Jason ran down the stairs and jumped the last four steps landing firmly on the hardwood, never missing a step. Kassie was right behind and tried to jump the last two, only she wasn't as graceful. She fell hard, but her excitement had her quickly to her feet and running to the tree.

Sara halted their fiasco with her voice. "Wait a minute." She handed Grissom a cup of coffee and began to explain how the opening of presents was going to work. "You get to open one at a time, it doesn't' matter who it's from, and we're going to take turns."

Grissom sat down as Jason claimed the duty of passing out the presents. He passed everyone a present and Kassie went first. She opened the package exposing the colored markers and more crayons. Jason was next and pulled a new pair of sneakers from their box to show everyone.

Sara grinned as Grissom began to open his gift. He laughed as it was 'from Santa' but, when his eyes hit the single displayed scorpion behind the glass, he looked straight to Sara. He knew the specimen was rare as a mount, "Where?"

She smiled, "I have my sources as well."

While Grissom was still oohing over the arthropod, Sara began opening her gift from Santa. She drew in a shocked breath as her fingers opened the small box.

"What is it?" Jason asked.

Sara proudly held up a very small jean jacket. "It's gender neutral." Grissom chided in.

They both had agreed to keep the baby's sex a surprise, and that left it hard for him to buy something for the baby when he didn't even know if it was a boy or girl.

"There's something in the pocket." Sara said as she pulled a small box from the pocket. She opened the small box and forgot to breathe as her eyes found the diamond necklace. "Oh my God Gil, it's beautiful."

He took the necklace from her and carefully clasped it around her neck. "I'm glad you like it." He placed a kiss on the back of her neck before removing his hands.

After they had opened all the gifts, the stockings were dumped of their contents and tossed aside as Jason and Kassie quickly attacked the candy.

"Alright, that's enough candy." Sara stopped them after they showed no signs of slowing down their consumption. "Go upstairs and get dressed please."

Jason and Kassie gathered their gifts and headed to change. The same crowd gathered that attended the Thanksgiving feast, only they were drinking store boughten eggnog, adding their own rum. Sara spilled that the boys got shnokered on the eggnog she had made and, assured Catherine that Lindsey didn't drink any. After dinner a few extra gifts were given to the kids for good measure before everyone dispersed for the evening.

Jason was lying in his bed reading the a new book he had recived when Sara and Grissom knocked gently. "Yeah."

They pushed open the door and entered. "Well, did you enjoy Christmas?" Sara asked as she sat on the side of his bed.

"Very much. Thank you so much, it was the best Christmas I had ever had." he pulled himself up to hug Sara.

Grissom smiled as he thought, 'Mission accomplished.'

"We're glad you and Kassie are happy." he added.

"Goodnight."

"Night son." Grissom added unconsciously.

Sara glanced briefly at him, but never called him on what suddenly caused him to call Jason 'son'. They left Jason's room and headed to Kassie's.

She was still playing with her doll when they walked in.

"Come on in bed." Sara patted the mattress as she sat down on it.

Kassie lept from her sitting position on the floor and bounced into the bed. Sara pulled the covers up over her and placed a gentle kiss on her forehead.

"Did you have fun today?"

"Un-hun. Thank you."

"You're welcome." Sara stood. "Sleep tight."

Grissom took her hand and led her to the door way.

"I love you."

They froze in their tracks and turned to face the small brunette.

Grissom smiled and felt his insides melt. Tears formed in Sara's eyes as she replied, "We love you too sweetheart. Goodnight."

After turning out the lights and heading to their room, Grissom then tucked Sara in under the covers. Unfortunately Grissom had to work that night, he mirrored Sara as he leaned over and gently kissed her forehead. His hand found it's way to her protruding belly and caressed it through the covers.

"You were right, I'm getting used to this whole family thing."

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I need reviews to encourage me to keep writing. I'm so focused on everything else right now, I'm way behind. My head is spinning from everything that I know I NEED to do, but can't find the time to do it. Anyway, hope ya'll are still enjoying this, there is some suspence coming up, I promise. I drove Just Thinking crazy because I wouldn't send the results to her...just a little tease to ya'll. Well I guess thegreatbluespoon knows what's going on, kinda. 


	17. Chapter 17

Ok, here's the scooby on this chapter. I lost it. Yeah, yeah, I know, I'm a dork. Luckily the totally awesome spoon had it. So, thanks to Jess, I have reclaimed this lost chapter. Thanks to Just Thinking for going over it, again.

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Teens & Tribulations

Chapter 17

The New Year came and left before they knew it, and winter had bloomed into spring. Their hearing date was constantly getting pushed back. So far back that Sara was convinced she would have the baby before they ever saw the inside of a court room.

As he stood in the nearly empty hallway, pacing like a caged tiger, Grissom grabbed at his tie and pulled it down.

"Would you stop it?" Catherine exclaimed as she stood to push it back up to his collar.

"I'm nervous."

"It's obvious," Sara spoke up. She was sitting on the bench outside the courtroom, now thirty-four weeks pregnant. It had taken that long for the hearing on their petition for adoption to be called.

Footsteps echoed towards them from down the hall. Grissom looked over Catherine to see Brass, Warrick, Nick, and Greg approaching. They were all dressed in their court suits.

"I see we're not too late." Brass mentioned.

"No, and if it doesn't start soon, Gil's going to rip off his whole suit." Catherine couldn't help but laugh at Sara's comment.

Grissom just pursed his lips at her as Catherine finished fixing his tie.

"There, now leave it alone." She warned before returning to sit by Sara.

Greg sat down next to Jason and slipped him his ipod. Kassie sat leaning into Sara, her feet dangling off the bench as she clapped her feet together. Catherine had loaned her a dress that Lindsey used to wear. In fact, she had brought over a huge box of clothes that Lindsey had grown out of. The guys stood around Grissom, reassuring him that everything was fine, and not to worry. He knew it would be, but if he lost Jason and Kassie, he didn't know what he would do. It surprised him how attached he had become to them in the short time they had all been together.

"Grissom." The bailiff called out as he opened the doors to the courtroom.

Grissom moved over to help Sara get up. That simple chore had become very difficult for her in the past week as her belly grew. Kassie took Sara's hand and tried to walk behind her as they entered. Jason walked next to Grissom as they approached their seats.

"All rise."

Grissom helped Sara stand once again. The look on her face was that of a person who just wanted to kill whoever invented the idea of people standing as the judge entered. He couldn't help but smile at her reaction, but Sara wasn't laughing.

"The honorable Judge Hugh Scott presiding," the bailiff called out.

Grissom turned to look over his shoulder at Catherine. She gave him a big smile. Judge Scott was an older judge who once presided over many of Grissom's trials before he was a supervisor. Now Judge Scott presided in civil court.

"Be seated," JudgeScott said. He flipped through the papers in the file before looking up. "Gilbert, lad, how are you?"

"I'm fine, Your Honor."

"You are now?How about at home, with your wife that far along?" The judge grinned at him.

Grissom inhaled a sharp breath.

"You're not under oath, yet," Judge Scott laughed. "I remember what it was like; you don't have to tell me. Congratulations, by the way."

"Thank you, Your Honor." Sara and Grissom spoke in unison.

"Okay, let's get this dog and pony show going, shall we? Now, the state has all of theses questions I'm supposed to go through with you, but I'm sure after having these two kids living with you for the past ten months, it has been enough for you guys to know that this is what you want. So, since I'm the judge, and by the look on Mrs. Grissom's face, we need to get this over as soon as possible." He mumbled to himself as he went over the file in front of him. "Jason Miller."

Grissom pushed Jason to stand as the judge looked up.

"I see you are on probation for quite a horrendous crime. Would you like to add anything?"

Jason swallowed a big lump that had settled in his throat. "Just that I'm not a violent person. I felt I had no choice, but now I feel I have a real family that loves and cares for me."

Judge Scott cleared his throat. "Jason, I'm sure that you are a fine young man, and I know that you are not violent. I read through your file. There is something special about you, and Gil sees it."

Jason smiled and looked at Grissom as he sat back down.

"Well, I can already tell that I don't need to hear from little Kassie." The judge added and smiled as Kassie buried her face into Sara. "So, I'll make this short and sweet on you all."

He read into the file for several more minutes, mumbling to himself as he went, then Judge Scott looked up, smiled, and said, "Adoption granted."

Later, after the hearing, they were all gathered at the small diner down the street. During the early afternoon hour it was near empty. Catherine had run home to pick up Lindsey, and she was sitting in a booth with Jason, Kassie, and Greg. The rest were sitting at a large table, because there was no way Sara was going to be able to fit between the bench and the table.

"So, are you sure you're not carrying twins?" Nick asked bluntly.

Grissom looked sincerely at Sara as she smiled back. "No, Nick, I'm not carrying twins. It's just one big baby."

"I know how you feel. Lindsey was just over nine pounds when she was born. You would have never known it to look at her when she was little."

"Well, this one is almost nine, according to the doctors. I don't know how they can tell." Sara said, as she moved uncomfortably.

"Are you alright?" Grissom asked with a hint of concern in his voice.

Sara shook her head. "No, I'm fine. He's just really active."

"HE!!" Several voices echoed.

Grissom looked at Sara with as much surprise. "I don't know if it's a boy or girl, I just don't like calling him 'it'. Besides, I hope it's a boy." She winced a little.

"Sara. Are you sure you're alright?" Grissom laid a hand on her belly and could feel the baby moving. He looked up at her, then to Catherine.

She read the concern on his face and moved to kneel next to Sara. Catherine placed a hand on Sara's belly next to Grissom's.

"He's moving into position." Catherine said as she looked up to Sara.

"Well, tell him to stop. It's very distracting."

Grissom looked to Catherine as she continued. "Sara, congratulations. This is the start of labor. It could take days of this before you're actually ready to deliver."

"You have to be kidding me?" Sara asked.

Catherine shook her head. "Nope. I had a friend that was feeling contractions for over a week as the baby was moving into position."

"A week?!" Sara exclaimed.

"Yeah. Then she spent over twenty-four hours in the hospital in labor. I've heard of longer, but hey, everyone's different."

"How long were you in labor with Lindsey?" She asked.

Catherine stood and sat back down. "Gil, you know the answer to that."

Everyone looked at him.

"Yeah." He scoffed. "She calls me screaming while I'm at work, so I leave my crime scene and pick her up, drive her to the hospital. God knows where Eddie was. She's still screaming at me, like it's my fault, and I think only a few hours later Lindsey was born." Grissom finished turning his attention back to Sara who was still showing signs of discomfort. "Come on. Let's go home so you can rest."

Once he had her resting in their bed, Grissom went into the living room and sat down heavily on the couch. Kassie came down the stairs and curled up next to him.

"Is the baby coming?" She asked. "I can't wait to be a big sister."

Grissom put his arm around her and responded. "You're going to have to wait a little longer, but yes, the baby is coming. And you'll be a great big sister."

"Why did we go to that big building today?"

"Well, that was the court house, and the judge made us officially your parents. What do you think of that?"

"I like it." She said as she raised herself up and kissed him on the cheek.

"Where's Jason?"

Kassie giggled. "He's at his girlfriend's. They're yucky."

"They are?"

"Yeah, while you guys were talking, they kissed. It was gross."

Grissom inclined his head. "Just remember this when you're older."

She shook her head. "NO! Boys have cooties."

"I'm a boy, do I have cooties?"

Kassie giggled again. "You used to. My friend at school, Savannah, she says that boys have cooties until they get older."

"Oh." Even though he had no idea what she was talking about, he decided that it was easier to just agree with her.

Grissom remained on the couch as Kassie moved to the floor and pulled her coloring books from the small pile of magazines that were neatly stacked on the coffee table. He smiled and watched as she colored a picture.

* * *

That evening, Grissom was making dinner, when Jason walked in, followed by Catherine.

"I believe this belongs to you." She simply stated as they entered the kitchen.

Jason was looking at his feet as he walked in. Catherine had him by the elbow. Grissom looked at the two of them before realizing that Jason had crossed one of the many lines with Lindsey that Catherine had set.

"What did he do?" Grissom asked.

"Well lets see, first they were both in Lindsey's room, with the door closed. And do you want to know what I saw when I opened the door?"

Grissom slightly shook his head as he raised both of his eyebrows.

"Tell him." Catherine elbowed Jason.

Jason continued to look at the floor as he spoke softly. "I was kissing her."

"Keep going. Tell him the whole thing."

Jason sighed as he continued. "We were lying on her bed."

Catherine made a motion with her hand indicating to Grissom there was more, but he didn't know if he wanted to hear it.

"I was lying beside her and I guess my hands got a mind of their own."

Grissom inclined his head as this new revelation, but didn't know how to react or what to say.

"Are you just going to stand there like a stump, or do something about this walking bundle of testosterone?" She asked obviously peeved by Jason's actions. "Lindsey's been grounded. What about him?"

"What do you want me to do Catherine? Punish him for being an adolescent letting his hormones get the best of him?"

She shook her head at him. "I can't believe you. No, wait, I can. Just do something. I'll see you later."

Grissom looked at Jason, who was still staring at his shoes.

"Are they still on your feet?"

Jason looked up. "What?"

"You've been staring at your shoes since you got here. I assume they are still there."

Jason smiled. "Need help with dinner?"

"Please."

Jason helped Grissom prepare the evening meal. He knew Grissom wanted to ask about what really happened over at Catherine's, so he decided to enlighten him.

"We didn't have sex."

"Excuse me?" Grissom asked, nearly dropping the tongs for the salad.

"Lindsey and I, we didn't have sex."

Grissom just stood and looked shocked at the young man's confession.

"I don't know what you guys would call it, but at school, it's just making out. We still had our clothes on."

Again, Grissom paused. "Earlier you said something about your hand."

Jason's eyes immediately fell to the floor. "It was Lindsey's idea. She took my hand and put it on her chest."

Grissom couldn't help but let his mouth fall open. He didn't know whether to scold or congratulate him. Jason was getting more action than he was lately.

"Hey, you guys didn't have to make dinner."

They both looked over to see Sara standing at the end of the bar.

"How are you feeling?" Grissom asked

She placed a hand over her belly. "Good, he's settled down for now."

"Are you hungry?" Jason asked from behind Grissom.

Sara smiled at them. "Duh. I'm pregnant, of course I'm hungry."

* * *

Once again, Sara had to convince Grissom to go into work that evening. Since she had been feeling a little contraction here and there, he was beginning to feel on edge. But, like always, she won. He quickly handed out the evening's assignments and retreated to his office.

"Hey, what are you doing?"

"Why are you calling? I said I would be fine." Sara replied.

"Well, I'm worried, sue me." He shot back.

"I'm fine." She said, but as a sudden contraction hit, she sucked in a breath and held it.

He heard her loud and clear. "Sara?"

"Griss, it hurts." She said painfully.

Grissom stood clutching his cell phone as he quickly made his way to the parking lot. "Sara, I'm coming home, just hang tight and breathe, honey, you have to breathe."

"It hurts." She spoke a hushed tone into the phone.

Somewhere in the back of his mind, he wanted to say 'I told you so', but now was not the time. He made his way through the late night traffic, as the only sound he was hearing on the other end was her breathing beginning to relax.

"Sara? Sara talk to me." He said, his words full of concern.

After a few more breaths she was able to reply. "That wasn't fun."

He couldn't help but smile at her comment. "I'll be there in a few minutes."

"What about the lab?"

"What about it? Sara, you're all that matters to me. You, the baby, Jason, and Kassie."

Sara felt the tears streak down her face. "I'll be here."

"You better be."

As he predicted, Grissom pulled into the driveway only five minutes after hanging up with Sara. He rushed up the short staircase and into the front door. The first thing he wanted to do was shout out her name, but he quickly silenced himself knowing that the kids were already asleep. Grissom found her sitting on the couch, and he was at her side in an instant.

"Honey, how are they?"

She opened her eyes and looked at him. "I'm fine, now that my knight in shining armor is here."

He smiled at her. "Funny. I meant the contractions."

"I know. It's gone, but I think I'm actually in labor." She said with a huge smile as she placed her hand on her stomach.

Grissom smiled back and his hand joined hers.

* * *

Ok, I promise that I will update very, very soon. And if I don't, just send me a message telling me to get my ass in gear. Other than loosing this chapter, I had 3 big tests at school, and I passed them all with flying colors. Thanks for all who are still reading, and to those who have reviewed.

TDCSI


	18. Chapter 18

So, like I promised, updating very soon. Thanks to all of you who have reivewed, I always enjoy reading your comments. Much thanks to Just Thinking, she knows all about having kids and stuff, so I can keep this as realistic as possible. And I can't forget thegreatbluespoon, whoda thunk we're long lost twins born 5 1/2 years apart. I like to doodle too, but I draw on paper, not peoples faces. Ok, new chapter, the arrival of the geek baby.

* * *

Teens & Tribulations

Chapter 18

Grissom sat on the couch comforting Sara as her contractions came and went. He was uptight at first and phoned Catherine to make sure that they were doing what they were supposed to be doing. She assured them that until the contractions get really close, or her water breaks that he should just stay calm and comfort her.

He thought she was just being conservative, but went along with the information. So, he laid back on the couch and Sara leaned into him. They slept during the down time, and when a contraction came, he rubbed her back until it passed. The excitement and anxiety came each time with a contraction, Grissom was anticipating the birth of his child.

Jason and Kassie came bounding down the stairs going through their morning rituals. Grissom checked his watch, it read seven thirty. He had gotten home around eleven, by his calculations Sara had been in labor for over eight hours.

"Morning." Kassie ran over and gave Sara a hug and kiss on the cheek. Then she moved to Grissom. Once she noticed both of their hands on Sara's belly her eyes lit up. "Is the baby coming?"

"Yes, the baby is coming." Sara told her.

Kassie turned and ran to the kitchen. "Jason, the baby's coming!"

She returned shortly with Jason in tow. " Really? Is it true?"

Grissom looked up at him. "Yes, it's true."

"Cool. Do we get to skip school today?"

"Fat chance."

"Oh, come on. School's almost out. We only have a few days left." Jason protested. "It's not like we're learning anything new."

"Hey, just go to school. Chances are that you will be out before the baby is born." Grissom told him. "Can you guys walk to the bus so I can stay here with Sara?"

"Sure." Jason said disappointed. "Come on squirt."

"No, I want to stay with the baby." Kassie began to protest.

Sara took her arm. "Kassie, if you go to school and do your work, you can come see the baby when you're done."

Kassie smiled and nodded as Sara placed a kiss in her hair. She then ran to join Jason at the door chanting 'I'm going to be a big sister' repeatedly.

Grissom watched them go as he felt Sara tense in his embrace. He slowly moved his hands up and down her arms.

"Oh God, it hurts."

"Just breathe you're doing good honey."

Within the hour her contractions had become within ten minutes and were getting more intense.

"Sara, we need to think about getting you to the hospital. Cause I have no idea what I'm doing."

"Okay." She hated hospitals, everyone knew it, but under theses circumstances she wasn't going to protest.

He helped her sit up and went into the bed room to get her bag together. Grissom returned to her in a matter of minutes.

"This is really it. We're going to have a baby." She smiled at him as he helped her up and out to the Denali.

Just as he had shut the passenger door, Catherine rolled up behind them.

"Hey. Off to the hospital?"

"Yeah, her contractions are under ten minutes."

"I'll follow you."

Grissom stayed with Sara as the nurses took her through the paces. He helped her change into a hospital gown, and practically laughed at the look she gave him.

"OW!" She exclaimed and doubled over, her water braking in the process.

Grissom caught her before she fell to the ground. The nurses helped him move her into a bed, and in a short time the contraction passed. Her doctor came in and examined her.

"I want an epidural." Sara demanded.

Her doctor shook her head. "No time. You're fully dilated and need to push on the next contraction."

Sara let her head fall back against the pillow. Grissom stood beside her taking up her hand in his, confused, he had no idea what to do.

"Ok, Dad. Ready?" the doctor asked him.

His only response was a blank stare.

"You're ready."

After the most painful thirty minutes of Sara's life, she squeezed Grissom's hand as their baby was born.

"It's a girl." the doctor exclaimed as she placed the newborn on Sara's lap and began to towel her off. Sara was crying as she looked at her daughter who was beginning to cry with her first breaths. Grissom watched on in amazement, there she was. A perfect little person that he and Sara created.

After a few moments of holding her, a nurse came up and took the newborn from Sara. Grissom's eyes followed every move that was made and done to his new baby girl. There it was again, that sudden instinct to protect. Only this time it was much stronger.

"Hey" Sara tugged on his arm. "Don't try to over analyze this."

He smiled back at her. "I'm sorry. I just don't know what to do with all of these sudden feelings I'm getting." He leaned over and gently kissed Sara. "You did great by the way." He told her before letting his eyes find their baby amongst the nurses.

A nurse brought over the infant. "Would you like to hold her?"

Grissom didn't answer, his brain vapor locked. The questions began forming in his head so fast he couldn't process them all. He just stood dumbfounded.

"Of course he would love to." Sara answered for him.

Grissom held out his arms as the nurse placed her in his embrace while instructing him on how to hold her. He swallowed the lump that had formed in his throat at the soft weight of her curled into his arms. Grissom looked from her to Sara, the smile on his face told her that at that moment, Gil Grissom was at a loss for words and drowning in happiness.

He passed their baby to Sara. Her maternal instincts took over as she gently cradled the infant in her arms. "She's perfect."

Grissom just smiled acknowledging her observation. He was so overcome with excitement and happiness, that he found himself content just to watch his newborn daughter rest peacefully in her mother's arms.

A few hours later Grissom sleepily sat in the rocking chair watching Sara nurse the infant. He smiled and listened to Sara quietly talk to her. Amazingly she wasn't as tired as he was. He felt as if his body would just shut down, but he fought it, as he continued to watch Sara.

"Go to sleep."

"What?"

"Sleep. You're exhausted and can barely keep your eyes open. We're fine. Catherine's on her way with Jason and Kassie."

"I'm fine."

Sara just smiled at him. "Close your eyes."

"Why?"

"Just do it."

Grissom was only intending to humor her, but when his eyelids closed, he instantly fell asleep. As his body relaxed he snored lightly. Sara smiled as she had never heard him snore before. She knew he was tired.

"Daddy's exhausted. You kept him up all night, and I have no idea what's keeping me awake."

A nurse entered and as Sara pointed towards Grissom, the nurse kept her voice down. "I need to take her to the nursery to give her a bath and check her temp again. I'll bring her back in an hour or so."

Sara placed a gentle kiss to the baby's head before passing her to the nurse.

"Have you slept yet Sara?" the nurse asked.

"No. I suppose I should."

"I would recommend it."

Sara looked back over to Grissom before shutting her eyes and falling asleep her self.

Catherine escorted Jason and Kassie to Sara's room. She peeked in before they entered and saw that they were both asleep, but the baby wasn't there.

"Come on, let's go see the baby in the nursery. Mom and Dad are asleep."

She led them down the hall farther until they came upon the large window.

"Where is he?" Kassie asked.

Catherine's eyes looked over the line up of infants until she found the bed marked 'Grissom' with a pink card.

"Where is she? You have a baby sister. See that bed that says Grissom on it."

Kassie was standing on the bench that sat out side the window trying to see in. "I can't see." She exclaimed.

A nurse working inside saw them and moved over to where Catherine was pointing. She gently lifted out the baby and moved to the window so Kassie and Jason could see her.

"I wanted a baby brother." Jason commented.

Catherine looked at him. "By the time he's ten, you'll be in college. And I somehow I don't think they are going to stop with her."

Jason smiled. "I still want a baby brother. And I'm going to make sure they know it."

"She's tiny." Kassie said drawing the attention back to her.

"Yes, she is. On her card it says she was eight pounds, fourteen ounces. And she is twenty one inches long." Catherine read out loud.

They awed over their new sibling for a few minutes more. Then Catherine took them back to Sara's room. "You have to be quiet."

"I'll be quiet." Kassie said with confidence.

Catherine opened the door and watched Kassie quickly make her way over to Sara's bed. She struggled at first but quickly climbed into bed and curled up next to Sara. Jason moved to sit in the other chair that was next to Grissom.

Sara opened her eyes and put her arm around Kassie.

"I saw the baby." She said in a hushed tone.

"You did?"

"Yeah. She's in the other room with a bunch of other babies." Kassie said pointing through the wall.

Catheirne and Sara began to talk as quiet as possible until the nurse returned with the baby. Jason stood and moved over next to Sara as she took her newborn.

"What's her name?" Jason inquired.

Sara looked back at him. "We haven't named her yet."

Kassie stretched out her hand and took a hold of the baby's hand. "I'm Kassie, your big sister. We're going to have lots of fun when we get home."

"That's the understatement of the year." Catherine gawked. "I'm off to pick up Lindsey, see you guys later."

Jason made a motion like he was going to say something, but stopped. Sara caught it and grinned before turning her attention back to Kassie and the baby.

* * *

The first week with the new baby in the house was hectic. Kassie wanted to help so much that Sara snapped at her, and she went crying to Grissom. And he was trying to help out as much as he could but, it seemed the criminals of Las Vegas had ESP, pulling every heinous crime out of the book. Night or day, Grissom's cell phone never stopped ringing. 

Sara was losing her cool with the lab and Grissom. But, as she thought about confronting him with it, Sydney would cry out, demanding her attention.

But once things calmed, Grissom and Sara were brought to the sudden realization, that they were neglecting Jason and Kassie.

"So, I'm going to go over to Lindsey's tonight for a few hours."

"You have to be home by ten. At least until you're fourteen." Sara enforced.

"I am fourteen."

Grissom looked up across the table. "Since when?"

"Since last week. My birthday was Wednesday."

Sara looked just as shocked as Grissom did.

"It's okay. I understand that you guys forgot, with Sydney and all the stuff happening at the lab." He stood and headed for the door. "I'll be back later."

Grissom nor Sara spoke as he left. Kassie quietly finished her food.

"May I be excused?" She asked.

"Yeah." Grissom said at a loss for words and watched her head up the stairs.

Only after they heard her bedroom door close did either speak.

"Gil, we've forgot about them. I've been so busy with Sydney, and you have been working..."

Grissom opened his mouth but no words came out.

"We need to fix this. I snapped at Kassie, we forgot Jason's birthday. What kind of parents are we?"

"The new kind."

"I'm going to go talk with Kassie. Will you listen for Sydney?"

"Sure." He replied then after watching Sara leave the table, he decided to clean up.

After he had done the dishes Grissom heard the cry for attention. He went into the bed room and retrieved a very awake Sydney. So, he sat on the couch and began to read to her out of the latest forensic journal.

Sara came down the stairs with Kassie only minutes later.

"Ok, sit over here." Sara pointed and Kassie leapt into the recliner. She then moved over to take Sydney from Grissom. "Make your arms like I showed you."

Grissom watched as Kassie formed her arms waiting to cradle the baby, as Sara gently placed her in Kassie's arms.

"Hi, Sydney. I'm your big sister, remember?" Kassie said as she proudly looked up at Grissom. "I'm holding the baby."

"Yes you are." He praised.

After a few moments Sara took Sydney back and Kassie put up a small protest, but only when she was assured that it wouldn't be the last time to hold her, she thanked Sara with a kiss and ran back upstairs in a much better mood.

Sara sat in the recliner and opened her shirt to nurse. Grissom watched from the couch.

She looked up at his gaze. "What?"

He gave a slight shake of his head. "Nothing."

"It's something."

"I'm jealous."

Sara let out a healthy laugh.

"What? Well it's true. She's almost two weeks old. How much longer do I have to wait?"

"You. Think about me. Compare the size of her head and the size of...you." She couldn't help but smile at her own analogy.

Grissom pursed his lips and grinned. Many times did he comment during their lovemaking on how she felt.

"You will have to wait for that. But..." She drew out knowing he would catch on.

And catch on he did. Only the opening of the front door stopped him. Jason and Lindsey walked in hand in hand and sat down. Grissom smiled. "Why are you guys here?"

"Mom had to work tonight..." She never got the chance to finish.

"Shit!" Grissom exclaimed as he climbed up from the couch and quickly retrieved his things. With a quick kiss to Sara he said his goodbye's and headed out.

Sara giggled as did Jason and Lindsey. After an awkward moment of them watching Sara nurse Sydney did Jason speak.

"Want to watch a movie?"

"Sure." Lindsey replied and stood with him to pick one out of the selection.

Sara finished with the baby and after putting her down went to bed herself.

Lindsey and Jason sat on the couch as close as possible watching the movie until well after midnight. She placed her hand on his thigh, and he tried to swallow the lump in his throat as his body reacted to her touch. She then leaned over to kiss his cheek but Jason turned his head and their lips met. Neither pulled away for the first moment. Their eyes shut and at first it was just lips on lips, but soon Lindsey opened her mouth more and Jason followed suit. Both of their bodies were crying out in ways they hadn't felt before. Unsure of where this was going, Jason knew his ass would be grassed if he was caught.

"Lets go downstairs." He huffed as they pulled apart.

Lindsey smiled and rose pulling him to his feet. Jason led her to the only locked door in the house, and he just happened to have the key.

* * *

Ahhhh, young love. But now the question is did he hit a home run, or just make it to third base??? Hmmm, I wonder. You'll just have to review and stay tuned for the answer.

TDCSI


	19. Chapter 19

Boo yah, so far I'm passing all of my classes, and finals is next week so it might be a while until I update. This took a little longer to post than I hoped, but it's here now, so ya'll can shut up. Thanks to Just Thinking, her information on everything is invaluable. And to thegreatbluespoon, so far she's just bragged on how good Arby's was the other night.

* * *

Teens & Tribulations

Chapter 19

Grissom walked into the living room after a strenuous shift and smiled at the sight before him. Lindsey was sleeping on the couch and Jason was lying on the floor next to her. He heard a slight commotion in the kitchen and went to investigate.

Sara and Kassie were making muffins. Well, Sara was and Kassie was stirring.

"Good morning."

They both looked up at him.

"I'm making muffins!" Kassie exclaimed as she continued to stir.

"I see that. Are they done, I'm hungry."

"Nope, not yet."

He moved over to Sara and kissed her cheek. "I'm going to take a shower, andI'll be back to have some muffins."

"Okay. I'll make a special one for you."

He grinned at Sara before retreating to the confinesof the shower.

Sara and Kassie finished making the muffins and ate them with Grissom as Jason and Lindsey continued to sleep.

"How late were they up?" Grissom asked.

"Well..." Sara swallowed a bite. "...I got up and nursed Sydney around midnight and they were still watching movies. So your guess is as good as mine."

After the short breakfast, Sara made sure Kassie was doing something that wasn't going to disturb them as she escorted Grissom back to their bedroom.They made a brief stop in the small room that was transformed from storage to a nursery. Once Grissom had seen his daughter sleeping peacefully, he turned his attention back to Sara. She tugged on his hand and he put up no resistance.

Once surrounded by the darkness of their bed room Sara laid down on top of Grissom and kissed him deeply.

She pulled back and looked into his eyes. "I made a suggestion last night, and I'm wanting to go through with it."

He just smiled back and rolled over so she was pinned beneath him. "Me too."

* * *

Grissom was sound asleep when Sara woke him.

"Damn you!"

"Huh?" he responded. His voice was heavy with sleep.

"There's a package out there, with your name all over it. Literally. Gil Grissom, caution: live animal. What the hell did you order?"

His eyes shot open. "It wasn't' supposed to be here until next week."

"What is IT?"

Grissom climbed out of bed and pulled on his robe. "You'll see." He stated as he passed her.

She followed closely, poised to strike down her husband for ordering God know what kind of thing for his little basement zoo. Grissom opened the small box as if Christmas had come early. He lifted the small plastic container. Sara stepped back.

"_Parabuthus granulatus._ Granulated Thick-tailed Scorpion, from south Africa." Grissom proudly announced.

"I see it's a scorpion. Why is it so special?"

"I'm going to use this little bugger to help make a new anti-venom for the hospital."

"Wait. It's poisonous?" Sara asked with concern.

"Yes, he will only sting if handled improperly. Why?" he asked as he continued to eye the arthropod in itscontainer.

"Think, Gil. We have three kids, and two of them are able to get into your little cave down there."

"Sara, relax."

"Like hell relax!"

He stood up straighter as she seemed to be picking a fight with him. "Look, I have to keep him because under government law, this species is to only be housed and handled by an entomologist or a zoologist. I don't **see **anyone else around here that qualifies, do you?" he spat back.

Sara just flipped up her hand at him and stormed off. Grissom watched her go and carried his new pet to the basement.

* * *

"I don't know what to do, Catherine."

"Well, Sara, I know you guys didn't miss his birthday on purpose."

"Yeah, but I don't know how to make it up to him. And Gil's not much help at the moment." Sara sighed.

"Well, you know him better than anyone. When anything messes with his emotional state, he turns to work."

"I know, it's just seems like he's not being very helpful."

Catherine sighed. "Because he's not. You have to remember, Sara, it hasn't even been a year since Jason and Kassie fell into your laps. Look what's happened in that short period of time." She began to list the events on her fingers. "You adopted them, got married, had a baby. That's a lot for anyone to deal with, let alone Gil."

Sara laughed briefly. "Yeah, I guess I just need to talk to him about it. That damn scorpion was my final straw, and I picked a fight with him. He's been down in the basement since the damn thing arrived."

Just then a cry echoed out into the living room. Sara went to stand but Catherine stopped her. "Let me. It's been a while, but I miss it." She stood, and in a few minutes returned cradling Sydney. "I always knew you two would have cute kids."

Sara smiled as Catherine sat down. "So, what's the news at the lab? It seems like forever since I've been there."

"Well, nothing new, there are a few pools that have been started since the birth of this little doll."

"And those would be..."

"Oh, well..." Catherine thought for a moment. "There's one on what her first word will be. 'Momma',''Dada', and 'bug' I think are the choices."

Sara laughed. "Bug?"

Catherine nodded. "And there are others along similar lines. Like when will she start walking, you know little stuff." She paused briefly. "Then there's the pool on when number two will be conceived."

Sara shot her a shocked look. "You have got to be kidding?"

Catherine shook her head. "Nope. I have money in that one."

"Catherine!" Sara exclaimed. "What date did you pick?" she asked curiously.

"Gil's birthday. I'll cut you in for half. There's a lot of money in that one."

"Ah, no. I don't plan on getting pregnant again that soon. If at all."

"We shall see. So, enough with that, about this birthday party."

Grissom spent the evening in the basement, and only came up to eat a quick dinner. Jason was unusually silent, but Kassie was very talkative. Sara didn't say any more words than needed to Grissom. She was still upset with him. Suddenly the shrill cry from Sydney's room silenced Kassie.

"I'll get her." Grissom said and stood suddenly.

"Thanks." Sara said shocked. She then began to wonder if he had been eavesdropping when Catherine was there earlier. She hoped not.

Jason and Kassie finished eating and went about the ritual of dishes. More water was on the floor and on them than in the sink. Sara just let them have fun with it as she went in search of Grissom.

She found him in the nursery rocking Sydney. "Hey."

He looked up. "Hey. Look, Sara..." he paused as she held her hand up, stopping him.

"I'm sorry. Instead of discussing things with you, I was just tired and took your head off." She moved in and kneeled next to him. "Forgive me?"

"Forgive me?"

She smiled and he leaned over to kiss her. "Forgiven." they said in unison.

"Here, she's hungry, and I need to get going to the lab." he said as he stood.

Sara took the baby from him and sat down where he once sat. "Don't forget about the party tomorrow. I left the list of things that you are supposed to pick up on your way home."

"I won't forget, and I know, invite people." He said with a sigh.

Sara smiled as she began to nurse Sydney. "It's only a few people. And you once said yourself that this was long overdue anyway."

"I know, I know. I'll see you in the morning."

Sara watched him go then turned her attention back towards her suckling infant.

The next morning Grissom went about finding everything that was on Sara's list. Everyone he mentioned it to was more than willing to participate. Even if it was short notice.

Back at the house, Sara was helping Jason clean up from his breakfast excursion. He hadmade them chocolate chip pancakes. She was less than enthused about it, but let him try. Surprisingly to her, they were good. Kassie was more than wired after eating chocolate for breakfast.

She checked her watch. "Jason, when you get done in here, Gil asked me if you would feed his tarantulas this morning."

"Sure!" he exclaimed. Jason quickly finished the dishes and headed to the basement.

Sara rushed to the garage and just as she was about to open the door Grissom opened it from the other side. Catherine was right behind him. He carried in a cake and she had several presents.

"Where is he?" Catherine asked.

"He's in the basement feeding the spiders. Is Lindsey coming?"

"Of course. Warrick went to pick her up for me. Greg and Nick will be here any minute. Most of us did our shopping earlier this morning."

Grissom turned to look at her. "While you were on the clock?"

She widened her eyes at him. "Yeah, duh. When the hell else were we supposed to shop?"

He just shook his head and placed the cake on the table. Kassie came bounding down the stairs and squealed when she saw the cake. Grissom scooped her up.

"You're only getting one piece since you still haven't come down from your sugar high." Sara told the hyper six-year-old.

She silently pouted and stuck out her lower lip to Grissom. "Don't look at me."

In the short time it took Jason to feed the spiders and look around at everything again most of the guests had arrived. He climbed up the stairs singing to himself.

_When I lay it on  
Come get to play it on  
All my life to sacrifice _

Hey oh listen what I say oh  
I got your  
Hey oh listen what I say oh

"Surprise!"

He stopped dead in his tracks at the edge of the living room. "Whoa!"

"Happy Birthday!" The group exclaimed.

Jason stood speechless and he slowly walked into the room. Sara walked up to him and hugged him. "We're sorry about your birthday, so I know it's a little late, but will you forgive us?"

He eyed the cake and stack of presents on the coffee table, and silently nodded with his mouth agape. She escorted him over to the large recliner and he sat down.

"Here, this is from me." Greg said handing him the first gift.

Jason smiled and ripped off the paper. "Wow! An i-pod."

"Yeah, and I've already put some songs on it for you."

Grissom rolled his eyes, as he could only imagine what they would be.

Lindsey moved over and sat on the arm of the chair next to him.

Jason finished opening the rest of his presents. Warrick had given him a silver chain, which was immediately around his neck. Catherine purchased a few short sleeve button up Ralf Lauren shirts. Brass and Nick had just given him money. Grissom and Sara also gave him money and a few science books for his collection. One on entomology, the other on physics. He gave both Sara and Grissom hugs and thanked the others. They all ate some cake, then quickly dispersed so they could get some rest before the night called. As Lindsey was leaving with her mother she slipped Jason a small box. She left with a smile, as Jason quickly pocketed the small box before anyone saw it.

Grissom settled on the couch, Kassie sat next to him and colored as Sara went to feed Sydney. Just as he was dozing off, he was startled by Jason singing along on his i-pod.

_Shake shake shake your money maker Like you were shaking it for some paper  
Took your mama nine months to make ya  
Might as well shake what ya mama gave ya _

Grissom raised his eye brow as he watched Jason sing and move his head and hands with the music as he sang. The volume was turned up enough that he could partially hear it, and Jason was singing louder than necessary.

_You ... you looking good in them jeans  
I bet you look even better with me in between  
I keep my mind on my money, money on my mind  
But yous a hell of a distraction when you shake your behind  
I got on my right side pouring some cups  
My whole hood is to my left and they ain't giving a fuck _

"Gil!" Sara yelled from the other room. She could obviously hear him. Grissom stood and followed Jason about the living room, the teen had no idea he was being followed and continued singing.

_So feel free to get lose and get carried away  
So by tomorrow you forgot what you was saying today  
But don't forget about this feeling that I'm making you get  
And all the calories you burn from me making you sweat  
The mile high points you earn when we taking my jet  
And how everywhere you turn I'll be making you wet._

Grissom ripped the head phones from his head.

"Hey!" Jason exclaimed.

"What in the hell is this?"

"Ludacris."

"It damn well is ludicrous. Listen to it, don't sing it. Please." Grissom said, obviously not getting that Jason meant it as the rapper's name.

"Fine. I'll sing it upstairs." Jason headed for the stairs as Grissom just shook his head and headed for bed.

* * *

Three more weeks passedand even with the night off Grissom couldn't sleep. Sara was exhausted and had fallen asleep the minute her head hit the pillow, so he left her and busied himself in his basement. He removed his new scorpion and gently placed him in a glass baking dish. After he turned off a majority of the lights, Grissom turned on his portable black light to see what color the scorpion would turn as it reacted to the light. He was busy watching the scorpion when the light highlighted something on the couch under the glass dish. Grissom paused for a moment and moved the dish to fully expose what he was seeing on the cushion. It took just a brief moment to recognize the stain. He had seen too many to mistake its identity.

* * *

Damn, if that's not one hell of a cliffhanger, I don't know what is. FYI, the conclusion to this little senario is the next chapter. So, the more reviews I get begging and pleading me to update, I will much sooner than planned. Otherwise, my last final is the 9th and so it will be nearly a whole week before you know what happened. So, leave your reivews, good or bad, and I'll see what I can do. Scouts honor.

TDCSI


	20. Chapter 20

Ok, here it is. Thanks to all who reviewed begging me to post this sooner than I had intended. Thanks to Just Thinking for her beta work and thegreatbluespoon, she's dropped off the face of the planet once again. I'll shut up now and let ya'll read.

* * *

Teens & Tribulations

Chapter 20

Grissom headed to the lab early the next night. He made a brief stop at his office before heading to his destination.

"Mia, I need you to do something for me."

She looked at him as his request halted her process of putting on her lab coat. "And that would be..."

Grissom fished out a baggie from his pocket. "Run a profile on this swab for me."

"And if someone asks me what I'm doing?"

"Just tell them it's one of my experiments and they'll leave you alone. I just need a profile."

She hesitated before taking the baggie from his grasp. "You owe me."

Grissom smiled. "Get the results to me as soon as you get them please."

"Sure."

He thanked her and retreated to his office. The assignments for the night were light, which gave him a chance to catch up on paper work. With a sigh he closed another folder with a half hour left in the shift.

"Gil." Catherine called out as she came in and took a seat in front of his desk. "We have a problem."

He looked at her over his glasses. "We do?"

"Oh, yeah. Big problem."

He looked at her as she fished something out of her pocket and tossed it on his desk. "What's this?"

"What's it look like?"

"It's a home pregnancy test." Grissom turned it to see the results. "Congratulations, you're not pregnant."

"I want permission to run a DNA profile on it."

"Isn't it yours?" Grissom was definitely curious.

"NO!" Catherine exclaimed. "My mother called me a few hours ago and was giving me a talking to about one night stands. So I went home and she said she found it in the trash. It's not mine."

"So whose is it?"

She moved forward even more, barely sitting on the edge of the chair, poised to strike. "I think Lindsey took it."

Grissom shook his head and removed his glasses. "Why would Lindsey be taking a pregnancy test?"

Just then Mia walked in and handed Grissom a folder.

"Thanks." Grissom said and replaced his glasses on the bridge of his nose. He glanced over the results before turning to his computer. "I have a theory, Lindsey's DNA is in our database right?"

"Yeah, why?"

He didn't answer as she leaned over the desk and watched him pull up two DNA profiles and compared them to the printout Mia had given him.

Grissom cleared his throat and sat back. "Last night I found a stain on my couch in the basement. So, I took a swab and had Mia run it." He raised up the folder and read out loud. "Two sets of DNA, one XX one XY, it's a mixture of seminal and vaginal fluid. No spermicide is present. The male DNA is Jason's, the other..."

"Lindsey's."

Grissom pursed his lips and nodded.

"Son of a bitch! She is so dead!" Catherine yelled and stood suddenly.

"Catherine calm down." He grabbed the pregnancy test from his desk and raised it. "At least she's not pregnant."

"You're not helping." She exclaimed as she was fishing out her phone.

"Who are you calling?"

"Lindsey."

Grissom glanced at the clock. "It's seven in the morning."

"I don't care. She should be up anyway."

He watched her then remembered. "She's at our house." Then it was him grabbing for the phone.

"Sara, are Jason and Lindsey with you right now?"

"You tell Sara her ass had better be sitting on the couch when I get there. As far away from him as possible." Catherine spoke loud enough where she knew Sara would hear.

"Gil what's going on?"

"I'll explain when we get there. Tell Jason to get his ass up to his room and Lindsey..."

"I heard Catherine, but I don't understand." Sara said.

"We'll be there shortly." He said curtly then hung up.

"Who was that?" Jason asked.

"Gil. He said you are supposed to go to your room and wait until he gets here, and Lindsey is supposed to be sitting on the couch when Catherine gets here." She paused and saw the exchange made between them. "What did you guys do?"

Jason stood and quickly retreated to his room as Lindsey went and sat on the couch. Sara knew they had done something big, and by their reactions, knew they had been caught. She shook her head and returned her attention to Kassie and continued to color with her.

Grissom and Catherine made the drive from the lab to Grissom's home in record time. By the time they walked through the front door, the anger was rolling off of them in such big waves, Sara was suddenly afraid.

Catherine stormed over to stand in front of Lindsey. "How could you?"

Lindsey said nothing and looked down at the carpet.

Grissom moved over next to Kassie and Sara. "Kassie, why don't you go color in your room?"

"Why?"

"Just please. For me. I'll color with you later."

"Ok." she gathered her things and made her way upstairs.

"Gil tell me what's going on."

"In a minute." He moved over to the stairs. "Jason David Grissom, get your ass down here now!" Grissom's voice boomed up the stairs.

Within seconds Jason was running down the stairs. Sara could only watch as she was currently out of the loop.

"Sit down!" Grissom pointed over to the couch.

Jason moved over and sat next to Lindsey. Grissom moved to stand in front of them. Sara stood to his side, just observing. Catherine was the first to rant.

"Did you two even think of the consequences of your actions? And why did you feel the need to have sex? Unprotected sex for that matter!"

Sara let her mouth fall open."What!?" Neither Jason nor Lindsey could look up at Grissom or Catherine.

"I found a stain on my couch downstairs containing both of your DNA." Grissom looked to Jason. "Give me the key."

Jason quickly fished the small brass key from his pocket and handed it to Grissom.

Catherine continued. "And Mom found your pregnancy test in the waste paper basket at home Linds. Thank God it's negative, but think about what would have happened if you were pregnant." She paced within a three foot space like a caged tiger.

Lindsey looked up. "I'm only fourteen."

"It doesn't matter. I've seen thirteen year olds get pregnant." Catherine let out a sigh that released her anger. She sat down on the coffee table and took Lindsey's hand. "Sweetie, I told you about all of this for a reason. I'm not trying to keep you from growing up. This is very serious, and I don't want to see you hurt."

Grissom remained standing as Sara moved close to his side. "Jason, what were you thinking?" he asked.

"I wasn't."

"Obviously."

"Gil." Sara butted in as Grissom took in a big breath and held it.

He released the air he held and continued. "Look, we set rules to protect you kids. Kids, you're still kids. I know you're anxious to grow up, believe me I was. But having sex isn't going to speed it up. It could actually take away what's left of your youth."

Both Lindsey and Jason relaxed slightly as the adults seemed to calm down some.

Sara joined Catherine's sitting position and pulled Grissom down to sit in front of them."Let's look at it this way,Lindsey, if you had gotten pregnant, what were you going to do?"

She just shook her head.

"Would you have told Catherine, or Jason?" Sara calmly asked.

Lindsey shrugged her shoulders.

"You would have to tell someone. What would you have done Jason, if Lindsey came to you and said 'I'm pregnant'?"

"I don't know." he softly replied.

"Did either of you think of that possibility?" Catherine asked.

They both shook their heads.

Grissom pursed his lips and spoke again. "The both of you are in Junior High, no jobs, or a drivers license for that matter. We love and care for the both of you. Don't ruin your futures by not thinking of the consequences of your actions. I'm not concerned with holding hands, even the kissing, but let's put sex on hold for a while."

"Like until after college." Catherine commented.

Sara smiled. "Or..." Both Grissom and Catherine looked over at her concerned with that she was going to say. "If you to find yourselves in a situation where_ when _you are older, that you might be going to have sex, just think about it first and use protection."

"Or how about not having sex at all." Catherine scoffed.

Both sides of the conversation died on Catherine's last comment. Neither side knew what to say next. So for five agonizingly long minutes they sat in silence.

Jason cleared his throat drawing the attention to him. "Are we grounded?" He asked for both he and Lindsey.

"No." Grissom answered hoarsely.

"Gil!" Catherine exclaimed.

"You can't keep them apart. They will always find their way back to each other. We were all their age once. What would you have done?" He asked Catherine.

She just sat back and couldn't answer. As she thought about his comment she realized that she was only a year older when she lost her virginity, and birth control was almost non-existent. "I guess you're right. But don't think this is going to just go away. You two have betrayed our trust, so don't think either of you are just going to stroll over to the other's house and be alone."

Jason looked over to Lindsey and they nodded their agreement. Lindsey stood and moved to hug Catherine.

"I was so scared." She sobbed into Catherine's shoulder.

Tears began to roll down her eyes and Lindsey let her fear wash over her. "It's not as fun any more is it?"

"No." Lindsey choked out.

"I'm sorry Lindsey." Jason told her.

She pulled back from Catherine and looked at Jason. "It's just as much my fault."

Catherine took Lindsey home leaving Sara and Grissom still sitting in the living room in front of Jason. Just as Sara was about to say something, Sydney cried out demanding her attention. She stood leaving Grissom alone with the boy.

After several minutes of agonizing silence, "Are you going to have another baby?" Jason boldly asked.

Grissom signed. "We don't know. So in the mean time we'll use protection until we think we are ready for another baby." Grissom suddenly thought about what he had just revealed. Here he was again discussing his sex life with Jason.

"I don't want to think about my parents having sex."

Grissom smirked. "Don't blame you. It's just one of those things in life. So, the next time you find yourself alone with Lindsey, what are you going to do?"

"Stick to kissing." Jason smiled as Grissom narrowed his eyes at him. "Sorry."

"I just want you to use this head." Grissom leaned forward poking Jason in the forehead. "Think about what could happen."

Jason nodded.

"I'm keeping the key to the basement for two weeks and I'm sure Sara has some things that she could use help with around the house."

"Is that my punishment?"

"I don't want to call it a punishment, how about positive reinforcement?"

Jason raised an eyebrow as he stood. "Works for me."

"Good, upstairs." he watched Jason head up as Kassie was coming down.

She moved over and began to climb into his lap. He helped her settle on his leg. "Can I have a dog yet?"

Grissom's mouth fell open as he thought of the appropriate response. He didn't want to upset her like the last time she asked. "What's wrong with the fish?"

"I want something to cuddle with."

"How about your doll, she needs you to cuddle her?"

Kassie pouted her lips.

"Don't give me that look. It's not going to work."

She knew he had called her bluff, so she leapt from his lap and headed back to her coloring. Grissom inwardly laughed and had to admit the girl had spirit.

He stood and headed down the hall. Grissom leaned up against the door frame watching Sara rock Sydney as she nursed.

"What?" Sara smiled at him.

"That was a big bullet we dodged."

She smiled slightly. "Yeah, you could have been Grandpa." Sara tried not to laugh at the situation.

Grissom quickly replied. "Whatever, Grandma."

"Oh no. I don't think so."

He smiled back. "Can you picture Catherine as Grandma?"

"No." Sara laughed as she repositioned Sydney to burp her.

Grissom moved away from the wall and watched her. "You're a great mother."

She smiled at him, semi-surprised at his praise. "Thank you."

As she placed Sydney back into her crib, Grissom moved to stand beside her. He just looked down in awe of the life he and Sara had created. "Have you thought of having another?"

* * *

Ok, I know many was hoping that it wouldn't come to this, but I let them not become a statistic for now. There is more to come, so kindly leave your reviews and I will update AFTER my finals.

TDCSI


	21. Chapter 21

Ok, so now that everyone's relived that Lindsey didn't get pregnant, we'll continue. Down here in Oklahoma, baseball is life, next to football, it seemed that every weekend I was at a little league watching my boss' grandson play. So that's where I got this idea, that and since Grissom like's baseball. Thanks for all of the wonderful reveiws, keep 'em coming. And thanks to Just Thinking for all of her input and beta work. I don't remember where Jess was, but she was around somewhere. Oh, and I passed all of my classes this semester, hell ya me!

* * *

Teens & Tribulations

Chapter 21

It was a cool morning for the middle of June. The window was down as Grissom drove home in the darkness. For the first time in two weeks Grissom managed to leave the lab before the end of shift. Sydney was nearly two months old, and he and Sara had finally settled into a routine that was some what successful. Jason seemed to keep his distance from Lindsey as he and Dirk began to hang together out more.

As he turned onto his block, two joggers appeared in the head lights. He passed them, pulled into the drive way, and walked to the end of the drive. Grissom noticed that in the year he and Sara had lived there, his neighbors were always gone when he got home. Now, he stood as one by one cars emerged from their garages and headed out.

Grissom approached the joggers. "What are you two doing?"

"Jogging." Jason replied out of breath.

"I see, may I ask why?"

"Little league tryouts are tomorrow." Dirk said.

"Baseball? Hasn't that already started?"

Dirk shook his head. "This coach has his tryouts the year before. I guess it's so he can practice with the team all year. He's really good."

"Do you mind? I mean it's just a tryout." Jason was beginning to beg. "I didn't think you..."

"I don't care. It's just surprising, that's all; baseball is a very good sport. It will teach you a lot." Grissom interrupted. "What time tomorrow?"

"Three, at the UNLV ballpark. I was hoping to catch a ride with Jason. If you don't mind Mr. Grissom?"

"No Dirk, I don't mind. How long have you been running in the morning?"

Jason and Dirk both looked at each other. "About a week I guess."

Grissom nodded, "Do either of you have a glove and cleats?"

They both just looked at each other once again before shaking their heads.

"I guess we don't." Jason said with some disappointment.

Grissom rocked on his feet and smiled. "Ok, here's the deal, both of you take a shower and I'll take you to get enough for the tryout. Dirk, we'll stop by your house so you can get some money."

Dirk gave a slight nod and followed Jason into the house. Grissom was right behind them, only he went to the kitchen to get something to eat. He spooned out some leftover fruit salad into a bowl, and sat down with a crossword puzzle.

Only the hum and slight water movement from the aquarium were heard until Jason came back down the stairs "Dad..."

"Hmm?" Responding when called 'Dad' had become natural for Grissom.

"You know what happened to Dirk'sparents, right?"

"Yes."

Jason's voice indicated he was nervous, and Grissom picked up on it instantly. "Well, his...ah...Grandparents don't have much money to help him buy what he needs to play ball with. So, I was wondering..."

Grissom looked up at him fishing for eye contact. "If we could help him?"

"Just a little." Jason answered quickly as he looked into Grissom's eyes. He didn't need an answer, and a smile appeared on Jason's face as he read it from his eyes.

Sara was exhausted when she woke up, or tried not to wake up. She never moved as the small monitor next to the bed came to life. With a tug, the blankets were over her head. Sydney was a fairly good sleeper, but with everything else going on, Sara's energy level was zero. She tried to ignore the screaming monitor for as long as possible. Just when she was about to make the struggle out of bed, Grissom's voice came over the monitor.

"Hey sweetie, what's wrong? Huh? Where's Momma? I bet she's still sleeping." Sara closed her eyes and silently thanked him.

After a few minutes Grissom appeared at the bedside cradling their daughter. "Sara, honey are you ok?"

"Huhhh?"

"You've been sleeping in more and more lately. Are you feeling alright?"

"Yeah, fine." She pulled back the covers as Grissom passed Sydney to her.

He watched as she settled the baby next to her and nursed her while she remained lying down. Sara's eyes closed heavily and Grissom refused to leave her side as he used his hand to rub her back, and as he suspected Sara fell asleep while Sydney nursed.

"Hey, we're ready." Jason peeked his head in.

Grissom held up his hand. "I'll be there in a minute."

Jason left and Grissom looked back down at Sara. After realizing that Sydney had released her hold on Sara, Grissom gently scooped her up and recovered Sara before heading out into the living room.

"Jason, here take your sister and you guys get into the truck."

"Okay." Jason drawled out his confusion as he took Sydney.

Grissom joined them with Kassie in tow, and after checking that Sydney was properly strapped in, he started the motor, and pulled out.

They returned two hours later. Grissom didn't regret bringing Sydney and Kassie along until the drive home. Sydney was hungry again and beginning to cry. Kassie was upset that they weren't shopping for her and threw a fit in the parking lot of the sports store. Both were still upset when they all walked into the front door.

"Why couldn't I get anything?" Kassie wailed out.

"Kassie, I told you why."

"I wanted a glove too."

Grissom was about to reach the end of his rope as he tried to calm a crying baby and a pouting six year old. "Kassie please, I told you why. You can get something next time."

She wailed again and ran upstairs. For the moment Grissom was satisfied with that as he attempted to prepare a bottle to comply with the other complainer.

As he got Sydney sucking on the bottle, Grissom headed to check on Sara. She hadn't moved much since he left, and after he had put Sydney down, he joined Sara under the covers.

She rolled over and pushed her self against his frame. Grissom embraced her, "Honey, are you sure you're all right?"

She didn't respond but only tried to get as close to him as possible.

Grissom woke several hours later with Sara still cradled in his arms. Only this time she was wide awake looking right into his eyes.

"What?" he quietly asked, not wanting her to take it the wrong way.

She slowly closed her eyes and held them closed before opening them to respond. "I don't know. I was just so tired this morning. I've never felt like that before. Ever."

"Ever?"

She slowly shook her head.

"Sara, a lot has been going on, I'm sorry I haven't been here more to help, in fact, I've probably hindered more than helped."

"I should have said something to you earlier, but you're either at work or working in the damn basement."

Grissom sighed, "I'm sorry." He gently kissed her cheek. "Did you get enough rest?"

"I think enough for now."

"Good."

"Because man I've gotta pee." She pulled the covers off and ran into the bathroom, leaving Grissom laughing in the bed. "Grissom?"

"Yeah."

"What are the boys doing?"

He curiously got out of bed and went to see what she was talking about. Grissom peered over her glacing out the small window over-looking the back yard. "Oh, they are going to try out for little league tomorrow. I took them to get gloves and it looks like they are playing catch."

She turned to look at him thinking this was something he had pushed onto Jason.

"Their idea." He spoke and raised his hands.

"I'm hungry now."

Again, he laughed. "You have been in bed for how long?"

"Long, and I'm hungry."

Sara was snacking at the breakfast bar with Grissom when Kassie came down. She refused to even look at him, as she pulled a juice box from the fridge.

"Momma please?" Kassie held up the box for Sara to open for her.

"Why doesn't Dad do it?"

"No." her tone was sharp and harsh.

Sara obliged and Kassie thanked her before heading back up stairs.

"What did you do to piss her off?"

"I took her and Sydney with me when I got the boys their gloves. She wanted one too, but I didn't get her one. So, she pitched a fit in the parking lot and has been pissed ever since."

"So, you bought her nothing, while you bought the boys something?"

"It was something they needed."

Sara shook her head and tried to remember of how simply he thinks at times. "Gil, you can't buy two kids something and nothing for the third."

"She'll get over it."

"She's going to hate you for days, kids remember things like that."

He could only give her a half smile knowing she was right. "When's your six week checkup?"

"Change the subject, cute. It's tomorrow, but don't worry, I'll be fine on my own, but what about Kassie?"

"I guess I'll take her with me."

* * *

Grissom took Jason and Dirk to the UNLV baseball field on the day of the tryouts. He was amazed at how many people were there, with a quick scan of the parking lot, Grissom estimated that there were at least fifty cars. He began to do the math in his head and knew that there was a big chance that neither of the boys would make the team. 

Kassie headed for the sand piled outside of the dugout. He took a seat on the nearby bleachers to keep an eye on her, and to show his support for Jason when another man approached him.

"I've seen you before."

Grissom looked over at the man that had sat next to him. "I don't think we've met before."

"No, I think I've seen you on the news."

"I'm on the news a lot more than I would like to be."

The man snapped his fingers. "You work for the police."

"Crime lab." Grissom corrected.

"Right, right. I'm Doug Landers."

Grissom shook the man's extended hand. "Gil Grissom."

"So, your son play ball?"

Grissom pursed his lips, why, oh why, couldn't he be left alone. "It's his first time at tryouts."

Doug let out a sigh. "It's D's third. He's an ok player, good in junior high ball, but this is like the minor, minor leagues."

Grissom now knew that he would be taking two very disappointed boys home.

"D's my oldest boy, Doug Jr., but we just call him D."

He couldn't stop his eyes from rolling, luckily his sunglasses hid it, and like a sign from God, his phone rang.

"Excuse me." he picked up the phone welcoming its interruption. "Grissom."

Doug watched the kids as they began to get separated out to move to different stations.

"I'm kinda busy at the moment... yeah, Jason wanted to try out for baseball." He paused and looked over at the man sitting next to him, who was patiently waiting for him to get off of the phone. "Ok Greg, I'll see you tonight."

"Is Greg you're other boy?"

"What? No, Greg works for me at the lab. Jason..." Grissom pointed to the field, "...is my only son."

"I've got four boys myself."

Grissom decided in order to rid himself of this nuisance he had to think fast. "Look, Doug, it was nice meeting you, but I've got some calls to make."

The other man gave a quick nod and left. Grissom put the phone to his ear for reassurance as he watched Jason being herded around in the first group.

The first station was brief, Jason was weighed and his height recorded. After that, each kid was playing catch, only each time they got further and further apart, until one threw the ball short. Everything was meticulously recorded, Grissom liked that method, because with the number of kids trying out, it would have been impossible to keep track otherwise. Jason was then taken over to the running track. Eight went at a time as they did a sixty yard dash. Grissom found himself cheering when Jason crossed the line first in his group. He was embarrassed at first, but after he saw other Dads either cheering or yelling instructions at their kids, he didn't feel so bad.

Once again the phone rang, only this time he cursed it. "Grissom."

"Hey, how's he doing?"

Curse no more. "So far so good, but there are a lot of people here. We might be having a reassurance dinner instead of celebrating."

"I just hope he's not too disappointed. Hey, I need you to pick up some items on the way home."

"Oookay, what are these items?"

"I'll text them to you, otherwise you'll forget. I know you will."

"I see you're feeling much better. Back to insulting your husband."

"Only because I love you."

"I love you too, we'll be home soon."

Grissom hung up in time to see Jason step up to the plate. One of the coaches was giving him instructions. He watched as Jason swung and missed three in a row. Grissom shook his head, wondering if Jason had even held a bat before. Instead of stopping the coach walked over to Jason. After a moment Jason walked back up to the plate. Grissom could tell he was more relaxed. The machine pitched the ball, and connected with Jason's swing. Instantly Grissom was on his feet trying to see the ball in the setting sun. The coach had more pitched and Jason never missed one.

Once everyone had gone through, the coaches thanked everyone and announced that they only had room on the roster for ten kids. Grissom had his doubts about Jason or Dirk making it. They waited around until that fateful piece of paper was posted.

Jason and Dirk waited in line while Grissom watched Doug's boy cry as once again, he didn't make the team. Dirk came bounding over to Grissom.

"I made it, I made it!"

"Good for you." Grissom praised as he saw Jason turn to face him. Right then he knew the answer to his question.

* * *

Well another chapter read, now all that is left is to leave a review. Come on, I know you want to, just try it, it's not that bad. Who knows you might even like it.

TDCSI


	22. Chapter 22

I'm so sorry this is like insanely late, it's kinda taken a back seat to my post ep fic. That and I'm suffering from writers block. So I apologize for being late. Thanks to Just Thinking and thegreatbluespoon for their beta work, and another may be added shortly. She keeps pestering me about it.

* * *

Teens & Tribulations

Chapter 22

Grissom picked up the items that Sara had asked him to before they got home. Dirk and Jason remained somewhat quiet the entire trip home.

He steered into the driveway and Jason leaned forward. "Dad, I want to tell Mom, so don't say anything to her, please."

Grissom nodded, respecting the teen'swishes. The boys climbed out and headed inside. Grissom opened the back door and being as careful as possible lifted Kassie's sleeping body out of the back seat.

"Hey, how did it go?" Sara asked, but as she looked at Jason's depressed form, she knew that he didn't make it. "Oh, I'm sorry." She moved to embrace him.

"I made it!" he exclaimed jumping in the air startling Sara.

"What? I thought by that look on your face..."

Jason and Dirk laughed and celebrated as Grissom made his way to her. Kassie had welded herself to his body, and there was no way she was letting go.

"Yeah, he pulled that on me too. Here." he handed her the small brown paper bag. "Did I get everything?"

Sara looked into the bag. "Yes, you did excellent. Well, I see she's forgiven you."

"I bought her ice cream before we went to the park. She played in the sand the entire time with another little girl."

She gave him a quick kiss before turning back to the boys. "Ok, since I guess we're celebrating..."

"Pizzaaaaaa!" They both drew out.

"We've done this too many times." Grissom stated simply at the boys ability to read into the future.

Sara picked up the phone to order the pizzas and watched Grissom head for the stairs.

After dinner Jason escorted Dirk home.

Grissom was getting ready for work when he felt Sara's hands on his back."Do you have to go?"

He smiled at her through the mirror. "You know I do. I'll try to be home at a decent time."

The next morning Sara was up and at 'emlike she usually was. What ever the doctor had recommended, was working wonders. Jason was helping her fix breakfast when the doorbell rang.

"I'll get it." Jason said running out of the kitchen.

Sara had a feeling it was either Dirk or Lindsey. It was both.

"Morning." both teens said in unison as they all joined Sara in the kitchen.

She smiled and watched as they sat patiently waiting for her to ask that all important question. Sara didn't mind them coming over all the time, it was the fact that they were also feeding them all the time as well. With a sigh she asked, "Have you guys had breakfast yet?"

"Nope."

"No."

She served the three of them some scrambled eggs and toast, and watched them devour it. Once the three were done they headed out the front door allowing for some peace.

Jason and Dirk began tossing a baseball back and forth as Jason elaborated to Lindsey on the little league team.

"It has nothing to do with school. This is just open to any one from 14 to 16, and we both made it."

Lindsey sat on the porch and watched Jason, until she heard a voice call her name.

"Hey, Lindsey." the boy said as he stopped his bicycle in the drive way.

She sighed. "What Tommy?"

He went over and sat down next to her. Jason and Dirk stopped and approached the intruder.

"Would you like to go and see a movie tonight?"

"Yeah, but not with you." Lindsey fired back.

Tommy was taken back. "What is it about that freak? I mean he's all 'Mr. Straight A', and he doesn't even have real parents."

"Why don't you go home Tommy?" Jason approached, his chest was out as his adrenaline began pumping.

"Bite me."

"Hey, it's his house, his girl, so why don't you make like a banana and split." Dirk insulted.

"Yeah." Jason celebrated the slam with Dirk. "Beat it, Tommy boy."

Tommy narrowed his eyes.

Grissom was coming up the street followed by Brass. Unfortunately he was only going to get to change and some breakfast, as they were heading to another scene. He noticed the pile of kids in his front yard when he stopped in the drive. Brass stopped on the street and climbed out of his car.

Both he and Grissom ran to the pile and each grabbed what they could get a hold of and pulled.

"Hey, break it up!" Brass yelled at them.

"Get off of me you freak!" Tommy yelled from the bottom of the pile.

Brass successfully pried Dirk off as Jason was being pulled back by Grissom.

"Come on jackass!"Jason shot back.

"Hey, HEY!!" Grissom pulled Jason back nearly throwing him into the side of the Denali. "Stop, right now!"

Tommy sat up in the grass and wiped the blood from his face. Brass pulled Dirk over to join Jason standing next to the side of the truck before attending to Tommy.

"Why were you guys fighting?" Grissom asked the two boys.

Jason stepped up. "He was hitting on Lindsey, called me a freak, her a whore, then said I didn't have any real parents."

"So we kicked his ass!" Dirk yelled to Tommy over Grissom.

"Knock it off! In the house now."

Lindsey followed them inside as Grissom went to see about the loser of the fight.

"How is he?"

"He'll live, just going to have a split lip and a black eye. Think you can make it home?"

Tommy nodded and gathered up his bike and tore off down the street.

Brass chuckled. "I don't think he'll try that again."

"I hope not. Those two can really get after it." Grissom put his hand on Brass' shoulder. "Come on let's get some food so we can get back to work."

Jason, Dirk, and Lindsey were sitting in the living room when Grissom and Brass walked by. Lindsey was blotting the small blood smear from Jason's face.

"Aren't you going to say anything?" Brass pondered.

"What good would it do? We were them once. Didit help to get a talking to or a punishment for being young?"

"It made me worse."

Grissom smiled. "Exactly. Morning." he greeted Sara with a quick kiss.

Brass sat down. "You didn't hear that?"

"Hear what?"

"Oh, just boys being boys." Grissom responded quickly hoping Brass would not push the subject further.

"Why, what did they do now?" She knew all to well that Grissom was trying to hide something.

"Jason and Dirk were just wailing on this other boy when we pulled up." Grissom gave Brass a dirty look for spilling the beans.

"WHAT!? They were doing what?"

"Now Sara..."

"Don't now Sara me Grissom, they were beating up another kid?"

"But the other boy started it."

"What did you tell them?"

Grissom looked to Brass and silently thanked him for getting him into this situation. Brass smiled back as he took a bite.

"I told them to stop. Let it be Sara."

"No..."

He grabbed her arm as she proceeded to walk by him. "Let... it... be." His tone was very low and demanding.

She only shot him a dirty look before heading into the other room.

After working until noon, Grissom showered and retreated to his basement. He spent the entire day, and even half the night down there before heading off to the lab. Though the thought crossed his mind about calling Sara and telling her that he would be pulling another double, but something always grabbed his attention before he could make the call.

Grissom didn't return home until just before dinner. Jason had gone over to Dirk's, and Sara was just fine with that, she was still thinking about killing her husband. Kassie was watching her fish when he returned.

"Good evening." he said after placing a soft kiss to her hair. "Did you feed them yet?"

"No. Will you help?"

"Of course." Grissom put the proper amount of flakes into her hand and watched her throw them in.

She stared in awe every time the fish went to eat a flake of food. He stood and went into the kitchen to try and soothe things over with Sara. She had her back to him when he walked in, and he could tell by her pronounced baby talk, that Sydney was in her bouncy while Sara was busy making herself ice cream.

He walked up behind her. "Good evening." She didn't even recognize his existence. So he ignored her. "How's my girl tonight?" His hand moved to caress Sydney's cheek.

"She's fine." Sara said coldly as she swatted it away.

"Sara."

"Drop it Gil."

"I'm not going to drop this. What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong." She said as she cut up some bananas.

He sucked in a breath and held it. He knew immediately that this wasn't going to be pretty. "Honey." Grissom placed his hands on her arms.

"Don't touch me!" She spun around to face him. "Just don't."

"Tell me what's bothering you."

"You. You're bothering me."

By the confused look he gave her, Sara knew that while he had been here with his eyes open, they were wide shut.

"Grissom, you're always doing something with work, whether it's here or there. I understand there, I've been there, I know what out there consists of."

Again he looked at her slightly confused. As her anger rose, her words started to not make sense, at least to him.

"But here, when you're here, all you do is hide out in the damn basement, doing God knows what. You have a family now, and whether you like it or not, we all need you." She spun around to continue her task.

Her elevated voice had upset Sydney and she began to fuss. Grissom moved over to pick her up.

"Don't touch her either!" Sara shot out.

Grissom stopped. "She's my daughter too."

"Yeah, well, other than two days ago, when was the last time you actually held her, fed her, changed her." She only paused briefly before answering for him. "Never!"

"Sara..."

"No Gil. Admit it, unless it has something to do directly with you, you've hardly been around since she was born. Every morning I wake up and you're not home. You've gone to work early every chance you get, and I've been doing this all by myself. So tell me what do I need you around for? Huh, tell me Gil, because other than a headache and a paycheck, what good have you been?"

She spoke with blazing speed and as his mind was trying to decipher the message, Sara began again, only he read it loud and clear.

"Just, go away."

"No Sara."

"Yes, Gil! I don't know what to do with you right now. Just...get out!"

Sydney had gone from fussing to all out crying as Sara yelled. Grissom didn't move as she picked up the screaming baby and turned.

"Why are you still here?"

"I'm not leaving." He said sternly, wondering how he had not completely blown up himself.

"Grissom I can't deal with all of this and you at the same time!"

"Do you really want me to go?"

"Yes!" Her answer was out the instant his question was done.

Grissom narrowed his eyes at her, making sure it's what she wanted. He didn't want to upset her anymore as he saw the tears streak down her face. She was crying from the frustration, and the fear that he would actually leave.

"Fine." Grissom reached out to place a gentle hand on his daughter's soft hair, before turning to leave.

He just made it into the living room before Kassie enveloped his legs. "NO!" She cried.

Grissom reached down and picked her up. She gripped him with all of her might as he walked to the bedroom. She continued to cry and sob 'no' into his shoulder as he pulled a duffle bag from the closet.

"Sweetie I'm sorry." he set her down on the bed as he gathered a few things. "It's nothing. I'll be back."

"Don't go if you're just going to come back. I'm sorry, I'll do better." She chocked out.

Grissom kneeled in front of her, and reached out to brush her hair back from her red face. "This has nothing to do with you, or Jason,or Sydney."

"Then why?"

He let out a small sigh. "I don't know why. But everything will be okay."

After he had what he needed, Grissom headed for the door leaving Kassie crying on his bed. He stopped briefly to take in Sara as she curled herself up around Sydney and cried herself.

"I love you."

She heard him and began to cry a little harder as the heavy wood door shut, indicating her world had collapsed.

* * *

After all that wait I leave you hanging like this? What on earth is wrong with me? Oh, yeah, I almost forgot, I'm insane. Thanks for reading, and to all of those who have left great reviews, keep 'em coming. Have a great day. 

TDCSI


	23. Chapter 23

I know I left you all hanging last chapter, hopefully this one will clear it up. This chapter was not my doing, well I wrote it, but the fact that the chapter exists at all, that credit goes entirely to thegreatbluespoon. If it wasn't for her threats, I never would have attempted it. Thanks to Just Thinking and the newest beta for this story, Kakidoll. They both rock. Jess is just good with threats, even from 1000 miles away.

* * *

Teens & Tribulations

Chapter 23

Grissom threw his bag into the passenger seat and slammed the door of the Denali. He quickly started the motor.

Sara heard the engine start and retreated with Sydney to the confines of her nursery, both were crying. Sara tried to comfort her crying baby, but since she was upset and crying, it was impossible to get her calm. She laid her down and stood over her crib.

"Shhh, I know I'm an idiot." She sniffled. "I screwed up...I..." The tears began to fall even harder as she watched Sydney refuse to settle down. Even at her age, she understood something was wrong.

Sara lowered herself to the floor, leaning against the crib. The crib Grissom had assembled with his own two hands. She pulled her knees to her chin and continued to cry. Only when an echo of sniffles filled the room did she look up with red eyes.

"Why did Daddy have to leave?" Kassie sobbed.

Sara opened her arms to the little girl. "Come here."

Kassie shook her head. "No. Why?"

Sara let out a big sigh. "Honey, I just lost my temper."

"Tell Daddy to come back." Her crying intensified, "Please," she begged.

With another sigh, Sara moved over to Kassie, propped up on her knees so she was the same height as the six year old. She reached out pulling Kassie into a comforting hug. "Daddy will be back. We just need some alone time."

"Why did he leave us? What did I do wrong? I'm sorry, I'll do better."

Sara's heart broke listening to Kassie's pleas. She had forgotten what it was like to be the child, caught in the middle of everything. She had done the same thing, thinking every fight her parents had was her fault, and now Kassie was doing it too.

"What's going on?"

Jason appeared in the doorway. Kassie broke away from Sara and ran to her brother. "Daddy left."

"What!?"

"What did I do?" Kassie asked Jason.

He bent down and picked her up. "You didn't do anything." He looked to Sara. "Did he leave on his own accord, or did you throw him out?"

Sara looked at him, the regret evident on her face.

"That's what I thought." He turned and retreated with his sister bawling in his embrace.

* * *

The door knocked just as Catherine was about to open it to leave for her shift. She sighed thinking it was some door to door salesman, but when the only thing standing at her door was a broken Grissom clutching a duffle bag, she knew she would be late.

His eyes were heavy and red rimmed, obviously he was upset. He had that slump in his shoulders indicating that he was exhausted both mentally and physically.

She didn't even wait for him to ask, "Come in." Catherine stepped aside and watched him as he took several staggered steps in and set down his bag. She closed the door and moved over to one of her arm chairs. "Sit down."

Grissom sighed and sat down heavily on the couch. Catherine was hoping he would start the conversation as she had a feeling what had happened.

"Sara threw me out." His voice was low and scratchy.

Just as Catherine had suspected. She remained silent hoping he would continue without being prodded.

"Jim's already gone, and since I'm off tonight, I was...um..."

Catherine leaned forward and placed a comforting hand on his knee. "You can stay here tonight." He looked up meeting her eyes for the first time. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Grissom slowly shook his head.

She could only nod, as much as she wanted to know the reason behind his presence, Catherine dropped the notion. "Well, make yourself at home, I'm heading to the lab. Lindsey's at Mom's, so you'll have the house to yourself." Catherine patted his knee as a final reassurance before heading out.

Grissom never moved, the only movement other than the rising and falling of his chest as he breathed, was the tears rolling down his face.

Sara spent the entire night curled on her bed, as Sydney slept right beside her. The bed was large, and empty. She knew that this could have been prevented if she hadn't held in her emotions, and told Grissom what she was feeling. He would have understood, and she knew it. Instead she threw him out.

She never slept, when the sun made its way into the room, Sara got up. The first thing she thought of was Jason and Kassie. She needed to talk to them, hoping they didn't hate her for what she had done. After a quick shower with Sydney, she dressed herself and the infant, and went in search of them.

Jason and Kassie were both silently eating cereal; she sat down at the table with them trying to find the right words to explain the situation. After several agonizing minutes of silence, she could only find two.

"I'm sorry."

Jason looked at her. His face was as hard as stone, with that 'been there, done that' expression.

"I'm sorry I lost my temper, and we got into an argument."

"When are you going to apologize to him?" Jason's voice was cold as he spoke.

Sara knew she deserved every thing they dished out. "Your dad and I have a lot to talk about, but when we are done I am sure that we will both be apologizing to each other. It is a two way street, it took both of us to argue and it will take both of us to move beyond the disagreement."

Both Jason and Kassie looked into their cereal.

"Don't you wish Dad could be home more?"

They both nodded.

"How long do you think he'll be gone?" Kassie spoke quietly, trying to keep her emotions in check.

"I don't know sweetie, but I think we should give him a chance to clear his head. He'll be back; he loves us all too much."

Catherine opened the door and quietly entered. She was surprised that he was actually asleep. Fully clothed, but asleep none the less. She made her way to shower and eventually to bed herself.

* * *

She slept until three when the shower running woke her up. Catherine got up herself and put on some coffee before getting dressed for the night to come.

Grissom joined her in the kitchen half an hour later.

"Coffee?"

"Please."

Grissom took the cup from her to only let the steam cover his face.

"Sleep well?"

He took a sip. "No."

Catherine kept herself from prodding, how, she could never figure out, but she did.

Grissom took another sip. "I'm going to go by the house and see the kids before I go to the lab. I don't want them thinking that this is their fault. Kassie already does, so I might be late."

"Don't worry about it."

He gave a small thankful grin before heading out.

Grissom sat in the drive way, wondering if this was even a good idea at all. Once he had worked up enough courage, he headed for the door and walked into the house trying not to announce his presence as he looked around. The sounds of voices indicated to him that they were in the back yard.

Jason was playing catch with Kassie, but when the little girl spotted him, catch was forgotten.

"Daddy!" She dropped her glove and the ball, sprinting towards Grissom.

"Hey." He reached down and scooped her up. "How are you doing?"

"Better now that you've come home."

Jason walked to Grissom with less enthusiasm than Kassie. "He's not staying."

Kassie pulled back to glare at Jason. "Yes he is, aren't you?"

Grissom sighed and kneeled down, placing Kassie back on her feet. "I wanted to see you guys. I'm sorry for leaving, but Mom and I just need..."

"Alone time. Yeah, she told us that much." Jason was just as cold to Grissom as he was to Sara.

"Well, she's right. I love and care about all you guys, Mom and I will work this out."

"She said she kept it all in." Kassie was trying her best to convince him to stay.

"She does that a lot. Look, I need to go to work, but I'm going to work on how I can be more of the father you all deserve. Then I'm sure Mom will forgive me."

"I forgive you, why can't you stay?" Kassie began to sob as Grissom reached out and pulled her to him.

"I'll be home in a day or two. I love you."

She sobbed "I love you too" into his shoulder before he pulled her back.

Grissom stood, "I'll be back in the morning and have breakfast with you. How's that sound?"

Jason gave a faint smile, "Good."

Kassie more than agreed.

"Ok, I'm going to go see Sydney, and then I'm off to work. I'll see you guys in the morning."

"Bye." They both said in unison.

Grissom walked back into the house and was confronted by Sara holding Sydney.

"How's she doing?"

"Don't make promises you can't keep to them Gil."

"Sara, please. I'm going to try as hard as I can to be here."

"Yeah, unless something comes up. I know how it goes."

Grissom pursed his lips trying to curb his anger. "Can I hold her?"

Sara passed Sydney to Grissom. She was amazed at how instantly happy the infant became.

"Even she knows you're gone."

He looked back up. "Then why are we doing this Sara? What are we trying to prove to each other?"

"I want you to stop and take a look at what you're missing by not being around. Just because you're not in the house, doesn't mean you're missing anything more than you were before."

He passed Sydney back to Sara. "I'm sorry. I guess we both have things to work on then, don't we." Grissom turned and left once again.

Tears formed in her eyes as she watched him leave once again.

Grissom did his best to pretend that nothing was wrong. Who was he fooling, even Ray Charles could see he was troubled. Catherine, thankfully, never said anything to anyone, but they could tell. He was short tempered, walked stiffly, and hardly acknowledged anyone. Grissom was sitting quietly behind his desk looking through the latest file while waiting for trace results.

"Once again, I am the case breaker."

Grissom glared over his glasses at Hodges. Unfortunately, no one had mentioned Grissom's mood to him.

"Guess what that mystery stain was on your victim's jeans?"

"Just give me the printout and go back to work."

Hodges gave a quirky look, "Fine, here you go."

Grissom snatched the paper and began to scan it with his eyes. "You're still here."

"Oh, sorry." Hodges turned to leave but found himself looking at one of the many specimens.

"Hodges, what part of 'get out' do you not understand!?"

Instantly Hodges scurried out of the office. Grissom let his temper calm before putting his head in his hands. He needed to fix this. He needed to be with his family.

* * *

I don't know if I would call this a cliffhanger, so we're all good, right? Please review, I always enjoy reading them. Next chapter will come sometime after the 1st, my Mommy's coming to visit for a week, so I'll be incommunicado for the week.

TDCSI


	24. Chapter 24

Sorry for the wait on this one, I had a blast while my Mom was here. Thanks for the many reviews, I hope this chapter is what you were looking for. A big thanks to Just Thinking for the shopping expertise and beta work, Kakidoll for her beta skills, and thegreatbluespoon, hmmm, what can I say about her?

* * *

Teens & Tribulations

Chapter 24

The next morning Sara made breakfast, as she couldn't sleep once again. Jason ate then headed off to Dirk's. Kassie ate then went to color in the other room. Grissom never showed. Neither had spoken to her more than needed lately. It seemed as if they were blaming her for Grissom's absence. Sara was exhausted, and after she had eaten, she felt as if she would just collapse.

She informed Kassie that she was going to take a shower. Sara stopped at a picture that was poised on top of their dresser. She slid a finger down the edge of the frame, as another set of tears threatened to fall. The picture was perfect; Grissom in his tux, Sara in her last minute wedding dress, Kassie was in a light blue dress, while Jason sported a navy suit as the sun set over the desert horizon. Their first family portrait.

It was then she felt that all too familiar feeling that she hadn't felt in some time. Sara turned swiftly and was in his embrace.

"Sara."

She cried into his shirt, soaking it through to the skin. "I'm sorry."

"Shhh honey. I'm sorry I even left you."

As he held onto her, Grissom felt her body began to slump down his form. He eased down with her as Sara knelt, crying to the floor. She hiccupped as she tried to form coherent words through her tears, Grissom just held her, using his powerful embrace to comfort her.

"Dada."

Grissom looked over Sara's shoulder; he opened one arm to wrap up Kassie as she joined them on the floor. She began to cry along with Sara. He held the two of them as if the world might slip away

The minutes passed as if they were hours, Kassie cried so hard, she actually fell asleep. Sara was dazed but still lucid.

"I'm sorry Gil."

Grissom stroked her chocolate hair. "It wasn't your fault." His voice was quiet and soothing. "You were right, about everything. I'm the one who's sorry."

Other than the few sniffles from Sara, and the occasional one from Grissom, the room was quiet. Grissom brought his hand to Sara's cheek and used his thumb to wipe away the stray tears.

"Come on, let's get cleaned up." He stood up while Sara held Kassie. With a grunt, he lifted the six year olds limp body. "She's getting heavy."

Sara climbed to her feet. "That's what happens when they grow up."

She followed Grissom up to Kassie's bedroom, and watched as he tenderly laid her on the bed. He turned and escorted Sara back to their bedroom.

"I know I haven't been the husband or father I should be, but after a moment of clarity, thinking it was all going to be taken away, I know now I need to make more of an effort." He moved closer to Sara, as her eyes welled up once again. "I love you Sara, and I'm sorry."

That last bit caused the floodgates to break once again as she began to cry.

"Gil..." was all that she managed to squeak out as he pulled her against him again.

Kassie remained sleeping while he helped Sara fix him something to eat. They worked quietly, sharing a soft touch or two as no words were said.

Jason walked in the front door as they were snacking. Grissom noticed something about his appearance that didn't sit well with him.

"Hey, what were you doing that you forgot to button up your jeans?"

Sara instantly looked up, thinking the worst.

Jason stopped at the sound of Grissom's voice. "You're back."

"Yes, and I'm never leaving again. Now, the jeans?"

Jason looked down. "Oh, uh well...I can't get them buttoned anymore. And they're getting short too."

"Why didn't you say anything?" Sara asked.

He looked at the floor.

Grissom shook his head. "Go upstairs, and try on all of the jeans you have. If they don't fit anymore, or are getting too tight, bring them down and we'll go get you some new ones."

"Thanks." Jason headed up the stairs.

"Man, he's getting big." Sara commented.

"Did you know that he's 5'7" and weighs 140 lbs?"

"He's not that heavy."

Grissom nodded, "And the way he's growing, he'll be taller than me by the time he's 16."

"Where do these kids get all of this height from?"

He just shook his head. "Do you feel like going shopping?"

"We need groceries." She looked at him and smiled. "When was the last time you went grocery shopping with the kids?"

His eyes got wide as he tried to remember, but it was so long ago he couldn't remember.

"Well, when he gets done, we're all going." Sara smiled a semi-wicked smile, and Grissom wasn't sure he liked what he heard.

The look on his face made her laugh, so she moved over to him, placing a kiss on his cheek. Grissom remained statuesque through her movements.

"You want to be more of a father and husband, first lesson, shopping."

Jason took less than fifteen minutes to rifle through his pants, and out of nine pairs of jeans none of them fit him anymore. Sara bagged them up and put them in the back of the truck along with the stroller.

Grissom went to wake Kassie. She was still afraid he would leave and clung to him as he took her to the truck. Jason was already in the back seat as Sara passed Sydney to him, and he secured her in the car seat. Grissom helped Kassie get buckled in before climbing in behind the wheel next to Sara.

She turned around and looked at the three bodies in the back seat. "Good thing this is a crew cab, one more and we'll need a van."

"I'm not selling this truck." He quickly responded before starting the engine.

First stop, the mall. Sara placed a sleeping Sydney into the stroller, while Grissom latched onto Kassie's hand. Jason walked along beside as they all entered the mall.

"So, what kind of jeans do you want?" Sara asked Jason.

He thought for a moment. "What kind does Nick wear?"

Grissom and Sara looked at each other slightly confused, as Jason elaborated.

"Lindsey say's he's got a nice butt, and that his jeans help the look." He turned his back to them and glanced over his shoulder. "I have a nice butt, right?"

Grissom gave a slight shake of his head while Sara laughed.

"Nick wears Cinch jeans." Sara answered.

Grissom looked at her and narrowed his eyes slightly.

"Hey, he does have a nice butt." She reached over and grabbed his ass. "But not as nice as yours."

All he could do was roll his eyes at her.

"Gross. I don't want to see my parents groping each other in public."

Sara pointed to her left, "That way."

She helped Jason pick out and try on several pairs of jeans, while Grissom kept his eye on Kassie and Sydney. Kassie was trying to help Jason pick out pants, but the first time he snapped at her, she went sobbing to Grissom.

"Ok, so we have five pairs of Cinches and what else?"

"He needs jeans for good, maybe a pair of slacks?" Grissom suggested.

Jason got a disgusted look on his face.

Sara laughed, "He's right. Lets pick out a pair of dark blue and black jeans, and a pair of Khakis."

After an hour of playing dress up, Jason had run out of patience. "Don't I have enough pants now?" The agitation in his voice was evident.

"Ok, we're done. Here Gil, go pay for these and we'll meet you over there." She pointed just outside the store.

Grissom took the jeans and did as he was told. Only when the cashier gave him his grand total did he protest.

"That'll be $302.98."

"WHAT?!"

The cashier nodded and smiled.

"It's seven pairs of jeans and a pair of slacks."

"Correct sir, the jeans are thirty-five a piece, the slacks are forty, and then there's tax."

Grissom gave the man an unapproving grunt as he handed over a credit card. He quickly signed his name, gathered the bags, and walked out to join Sara.

As they walked back to the truck Jason walked with Kassie, holding her hand. They were several steps in front of Grissom and Sara.

"Do you know how much we just spent in there?" He kept his voice quiet so Jason wouldn't overhear.

Sara turned to look at him. "About three hundred dollars."

He was taken aback. "How..."

"Gil, clothes are expensive, and with growing kids, they'll need new clothes every year as they get bigger."

He just shook his head and could only thank God that Jason was nearly grown, but Kassie was still young, and he saw some of the prices on the baby clothes and saw dollar signs flying away.

"Gil...Gil...GIL!"

"Huh?"

"Unlock the truck please."

"Oh, yeah. Sorry, I was thinking."

Jason laughed. "Yeah, that blank stare gives it away."

Grissom just shook his head and escorted them to their next destination, the grocery store.

Before they walked in Sara had a warning for him. "Just remember one thing."

"What's that?"

"Just say 'No'."

"Okay." Grissom replied very confused.

He pushed the cart and entertained Sydney at the same time. She would giggle at him as he stuck his tongue out at her. This was a breeze, he thought. Jason was just walked along behind them not saying much as Kassie helped place things into the cart that Sara had handed her.

"Are you ready?" Sara asked him.

"Ready for what?" Just as he asked, they turned into the cereal isle.

He watched as Kassie left her post and headed down the isle, followed by Jason. Within seconds both returned begging at Sara like homeless children.

"Can I get this, please...?"

"No, I need more protein in my diet for baseball, can I get this?"

"I want this."

Their words blended together, and Grissom couldn't decipher a word they said. Somehow Sara did and she quickly told them several 'no's in a row. He watched as they returned the items only to pick up several more and the process repeated.

He could only shake his head as they asked him the same questions they bombarded Sara with. After a second time being turned down, Kassie sat down in the middle of the isle and refused to get up, clutching a box of Cookie Crisp.

"We're going to get the same cereal we usually do." Sara told her sternly, and began walking away.

"Hey, what about me?" Jason asked holding a box of Wheaties.

Sara thought briefly before nodding her approval.

Kassie screamed and threw the box in their direction. Grissom was wide eyed with shock at how a box of cereal could turn her into the child from hell.

Sara walked past the box of cereal Kassie had thrown. "Would you get her please?"

Grissom passed the cart to Sara as he kicked the box aside, picked up a now crying Kassie, and followed Sara. She continued to fuss as he carried her down the next isle. It continued until they checked out.

Again, Grissom handed over a credit card to Sara, and watched as the total was brought up for all to see.

"My God."

Sara turned. "What?"

"A hundred and fifty dollars for food?"

"Gil, there's five of us now." She signed the electronic screen and handed back Grissom his card. "And just think, you want another one."

He couldn't answer; only follow her out the door.

After stopping briefly to pick up some burgers, and a salad for Sara; they ate against Grissom's approval in the truck. Once home, Grissom backed the truck into the garage and began unloading bodies before groceries. Jason took his clothes up to his room, Grissom carried Kassie to hers, and Sara went to put down Sydney before they unloaded the rest.

Grissom was sitting, exhausted, on the couch as Sara plopped down beside him, letting out a sigh as she curled into him.

He kissed her hair. "How often do you go grocery shopping?"

"About once a week."

"You're kidding, right?"

"Nope. But usually Jason stays home and watches Kassie, so it's just me and Sydney. I thought you needed the full experience."

"Ha, traumatized is a much better description."

She picked her head up to look at him. "Ready to make another?"

Instantly his eyebrow went up. "I'm more than willing to try, but heaven forbid that for some reason, latex gets in the way."

She smiled as he leaned in to capture her lips. Sara slipped her tongue out to quickly deepen the kiss. Grissom moaned into her mouth and leaned forward, pushing her back until his body covered hers. He continued to kiss her as his hands moved down her body.

Sara moaned into his mouth as the heat between them rose. Grissom took that as a sign to keep going.

"Ahhgg, get a room." Jason said as he passed them heading into the kitchen.

Grissom looked up to watch the teen calmly walk away.

Sara let out a disappointing sigh knowing that at that moment, mood killer was an understatement.

* * *

Now it's time to review and let me know if it was worth posting. I've been fighting with these next upcoming chapters so let me know if they suck. I'll add the next one in a few days or so. Depends on how many times we go riding in the canyon. :) 

TDCSI


	25. Chapter 25

I know, this is later than I had intended, but I have spent most of the week in the canyon, and I'm dead tired. Many thanks to Just Thinking and Kakidoll for their beta work. And also to thegreatbluespoon, she's cool as hell, just like me. Thanks for the many reviews.

* * *

Teens & Tribulations

Chapter 25

The next morning Sara arose very refreshed. In fact, it was earlier than what she had been normally waking up. She carefully climbed out of bed as not to disturb the sleeping body next to her. The past few days had exhausted her, emotionally more than physically, she could only imagine what toll it had taken on Grissom's body.

She made her usual stop to change, feed, and dress Sydney before heading into the kitchen. Sara set Sydney on the counter as she went about setting out items for breakfast.

Jason and Kassie were soon in the kitchen. Kassie was dressed in pink pajamas, while Jason was wearing a pair of pajama bottoms only. Sara let them make their own cereal, while she spread some cream cheese on a bagel.

"Where's Dad?"

"He's sleeping, why?"

"Well, we have our first group practice this evening, and I was wondering if he would be able to come."

Sara smiled. "I'm sure he can."

Jason smiled and continued eating.

Sara finished her breakfast and put Sydney down in her crib. She had managed to take a liking to staying home and taking care of things. It was amazing the things she could get done in a single day, well, now that the kids were home all the time it didn't feel like that. Way different story when they were in school.

Grissom slept throughout the day, which surprised Sara, as he had slept soundly last night. Her only regret was not trying to reignite the flame that Jason had put out. As she thought about it more, it had only been seven weeks now since Sydney was born, and was kind of grateful for the interruption.

"Hey, you need to wake up." Sara pulled the curtains back to allow the room to be filled with the late afternoon sun. She turned to see the body under the covers hadn't moved. With a smile, she sat heavily enough on the bed to cause it to bounce.

Grissom rolled over to look up at her. "What time is it?"

"It's three in the afternoon."

"I've been asleep all day?"

"And night. Come on, get up, and take a shower. Jason wants you to take him to practice."

"Yeah, they start having practice once a week." With a grunt, he climbed out of bed and headed to the shower.

After picking up Dirk, Grissom drove both boys to the UNLV ballpark. Both boys didn't wait for the truck to stop completely before they jumped out and sprinted towards the dugout. Once he had the vehicle secured, Grissom followed.

"Here." Jason came over waiving a sheet of paper.

Grissom took the paper. "What's this?"

"A schedule of when and where our practices are as the weather turns cold." Jason was more than excited about playing baseball, and it was evident in his voice. "Coach asked us about letting him know ahead of time if we would be absent or away on vacation. Are we going to go on vacation?"

With a quick rise of his eyebrows Grissom replied, "I haven't thought about it. Sara and I have been together for over a year and have never left Vegas."

Jason just smiled and ran back to the group.

He had dropped Jason and Dirk off at the house with Sara before heading to the lab. Now he was stationed behind his desk, constantly replaying Jason's subtle request in his mind.

"A vacation. Sounds good. I'd be able to get away from here, Sara from the same old routine at home."

Grissom continued to talk to himself as his left arm involuntarily opened a lower desk drawer and pulled out a simple form. He stared at the sheet of paper before he had made up his mind. He turned to the computer, and with a smile, he began his search.

The next morning Grissom burst through the front door, unable to contain his excitement. "Hey everyone, guess what?"

"Ecklie's going to let you run the lab." Sara shot back instantly.

"Without all the paper work." Jason added.

Grissom was stunned at their remarks. "No. That would be a miracle." He moved over to sit with them at the table while they ate breakfast. "Vacation."

"What?" Sara stopped eating to look at him and make sure he was indeed the man she had married.

"A vacation. All of us." The excitement was uncontainable.

Sara continued to stare at him. "Ok, who are you and what have you done with Gil?"

He laughed at her bluntness. "Jason gave me the idea yesterday."

"I did?"

"Yes. I stewed on it all night, and in three weeks we are all going on vacation."

"Cool!"

"I don't know Gil..."

"Sara, you need this, and God knows I do. I've already turned in my vacation request, and I've even made all of the necessary reservations."

"Where?"

"San Diego. I've only been there once, and I'm not about to reveal what year that was. Have you?" Sara just shook her head, still stunned that he would come up with such an idea so spontaneously. "I know the kids haven't, and there is so much to see and do for everyone. It's far enough away from the lab to not be disturbed, yet close enough to drive."

"How far of a drive are we talking?" Sara was still unsure about the whole idea.

"Five hours. We can load everything into the back of the truck and just go."

"I'm in," Jason said.

Sara just looked at Grissom. He had that unsure, yet excited look on his face, "Ok."

"Yes!!" Jason exclaimed and jumped up from the table.

Grissom smiled and pulled Sara to him so he could kiss her. "Where's Kassie?" It was then that he noticed her absence.

"She was throwing Cheerios at Jason, so I sent her to her room. Are you sure about this? I mean I'm all for it, but what about you?"

He just gave her a slight nod. "We all need this." His voice was low and sincere.

That's when Sara realized that he was willing to make sacrifices for their family.

* * *

The weeks passed faster than Grissom had hoped. He was excited about finally taking a vacation, but that's not what he was afraid of. 

"So you, Sara, and three kids in closed quarters for five hours? Sounds like fun to me."

Grissom looked up over his desk at Brass. He let some of his nervousness out in a heavy sigh.

"I missed family vacations."

"I thought you hated your ex-wife?"

"Yeah, she would leave with Ellie, I stayed at home. Man it was peaceful."

Grissom scoffed as he returned his focus to the papers before him.

"When do you guys leave?"

"Day after tomorrow."

"Oh."

He looked up again. "Why?"

"Nothing, have fun with that." Brass pointed to the papers as he left.

Grissom gave his head a shake, but before he looked back down he saw Greg sprinting down the hall and barely making the corner. That was the sure fire indication to him that something was up. He didn't know whether it was good or bad, and was determined to not get lured into some kind of trap.

"Hey Gil."

"No Catherine, I'm not falling for it."

"Falling for what?"

"What ever it is you guys are doing. I just saw Greg hauling ass down the hall, and Brass was sure curious as to when I'm leaving."

"As am I. So, when are you leaving?"

He looked up at her. "Tonight's my last night, and we leave the day after tomorrow. Again I ask, why?"

"Hey, anytime you're gone I get to be boss. Except not in this creepy office."

"What's wrong with my office?"

"Oh...nothing." She shook her head.

He tried his best to not let himself be caught in the trap, and just smiled back at her.

"Griss, Cath, come quick, something's wrong with Greg!" Nick huffed out of breath.

Grissom was on his feet and around his desk beating Catherine to the door as they ran after Nick. They ran into the break room and Grissom kneeled next to Greg.

"Greg, what's wrong?"

He coughed a few times. "I choked."

"You chocked on what?"

"Frosting."

"Frosting?"

"Yeah, the frosting on your vacation cake."

Grissom pursed his lips and stood to see the cake sitting in the middle of the table.

"Well, we weren't getting anywhere with words." Brass spoke up.

"I knew you guys were up to something." He pointed his finger at them all. "You have all cried wolf enough. That's why I don't fall for it like I used to."

"We got you in here." Greg said proudly.

"Next time something could really be wrong, and I would just ignore it and let you die."

Greg scoffed, "You wouldn't."

"Wouldn't I?" Grissom smirked at him.

"Ok, now that he's here, we are here to celebrate Grissom's official vacation. I checked and it has been, you all ready for this?...It has been thirteen years since Dr. Gil Grissom has taken a vacation. It's a department record." Catherine finished sarcastically.

Everyone knew it had been long since his last vacation, but not that long. They enjoyed the cake and shared leisurely stories, most involved Sara and him, and that's when Grissom realized how much he had missed having Sara around at the lab.

* * *

This is not a cliffhanger. If you think it is then something is seriously wrong with you. Living Doll, now that was a cliffhanger. Ass holes. Anyway, more to come, can you imagine vacationing with this bunch, yikes. And if you can pick it out, I stole a line from thespoon. I know she'll find it. 

TDCSI


	26. Chapter 26

Alright, you are never going to believe this. My computer crashed, but it stayed alive enough to back up **all** of my files, thank God. So now I'm awaiting the arrival of my new notebook. It could take up to a week or little longer. So, in the mean time, I'm using the internet off of a friends computer, and have seemed to get mine up and going enough to do word processing. I thank everyone for the reviews and can only ask that you bear with me. It might be a while until I'm back up and running. Damn this sucks.

Thanks a million to my betas; Just Thinking, Kakidoll, & thegreatbluespoon. And a special thank you to anneruhland, she brought up the most annoying part of a road trip that I totally forgot about.

* * *

Teens & Tribulations

Chapter 26

"One more time, do we have everything?"

It was the tenth time Grissom had asked Sara if she thought they had everything humanly possible that Sydney might need. He had the back of the truck full. Their luggage only took up a small portion of the eight-foot box. The remaining portion looked as if they had gone on a shopping spree at the baby store.

"Thank God you were able to borrow this topper."

"I didn't borrow it Sara, I bought it."

She stopped and looked at him, eyes wide open and mouth agape. "How much was it?"

"Enough." He turned to walk away.

"Gil."

Grissom stopped and walked to stand in front of her. Sara held her ground as he placed his hands on her side and began to slowly caress her. She couldn't help but soften her composure as the strong male scent of him overtook her senses.

"Don't you think we're spending enough money as it is?"

"Sara, I did some checking into some investments, and this doesn't even touch the tip of the ice burg." He pulled her into him, wrapping his arms around her. "I'm hoping Jason could watch the girls while I take my lady down to the beach and show her how much I love her."

Feeling frisky, Sara pulled away enough to look into his face. "Do I know her, or is she new?"

She smiled and he gave her a dirty look. "Funny, dear." He pressed his lips to hers.

Sara slipped out her tongue to graze his lips, and Grissom instantly reacted. He moved forward, pressing her back into the cool, black metal. She moaned into his mouth as he pressed harder.

"God, how do you expect me to not think about sex when every time I turn around, you two are making out? This is just wrong." Jason put another bag of diapers into the back and quickly walked back into the house.

After another hour of gathering and double-checking, Grissom finally merged onto I-15 south. Sara spent the first hour turned around in her seat dictating the activity that was happening in the back seat. Jason was listening to his i-pod, while Kassie was wadding up small pieces of paper and tossing them at Jason. Their commotion had Sydney fussing, as she was in her car seat between them and their rants.

She finally got them separated, but only when that all too familiar smell invaded the cabin.

"Gil, we need to stop."

Grissom just gave a slight nod, grateful for the intrusion. The chaos in the back seat was driving him insane, and he still had four hours left to go.

* * *

Five hours later, Grissom pulled up in front of the Crowne Plaza Hotel. He was more than grateful that they had finally arrived. After the first stop to change Sydney, the barrage of 'Are we there yet?' pierced the air. He was beginning to seriously think that this whole thing was a bad idea, and quickly climbed out as a bellhop opened the door for Sara. She thanked him and opened the back door, allowing Kassie to leap from the truck so she could extract Sydney. Grissom moved around to the back of the truck with Jason and began to remove the luggage. 

Sara was speechless at the planning that Grissom had done. After checking in, they were escorted to their suite. Jason and Kassie were staying in one of the two bedrooms, a crib was already set up in the main living area, and a small kitchen dawned a mini fridge and microwave. Sara walked into the master bedroom and was stunned at the king-sized, four post bed. She moved to the next door and flipped on the light switch.

"Oh my God." Her hand went to cover her stunned mouth.

The blue tiled floor accented the pearl colored whirlpool that sat next to the biggest shower she had ever seen. Sudden thoughts of her and Grissom wet and naked together in the shower sent shivers down her spine. She turned out the lights and proceeded back into the master bedroom.

Grissom was lying on his back staring at the ceiling, feet planted firmly on the floor. Ignoring him for the moment, she went into the other room, and could hear Jason and Kassie talking about the room. With a smile, she put Sydney down in the crib before returning to him. Sara placed her legs on either side of his and leaned over him, using her arms to hold herself up.

"How did you get a room like this?" She gently kissed him.

He sighed, "I used my knowledge as a CSI."

"You mean, you have connections and pulled some strings."

"Mmm, something like that." He reached up and pulled her down flush against his body and kissed her back.

"Hey Mom,...oh man, what is it with you two?"

Sara moved off of Grissom and tried to hide her embarrassment. "What do you want?" she asked Jason.

"When or where are we having dinner? We're hungry."

She turned her head to look at Grissom, shrugging her shoulders. "How about the restaurant downstairs?"

"Sounds good to me." Grissom stood up, extended his arms to Sara, and pulled her to her feet.

Grissom carried a very awake Sydney, while Jason and Kassie bounded off of the elevator when the doors opened. Sara wandered over to the front desk before joining them in the restaurant. They were seated and ordered their food shortly there after.

"Ok, here's some brochures on things to do around here. Six flags, Sea World, the zoo, Wild Animal Park, Legoland; man, this town has everything." She continued to thumb through the many pamphlets.

"Are there roller coasters?" Jason asked.

Grissom's head whipped around to the teen so fast he thought he had given himself whiplash. "Six Flags is loaded with roller coasters."

"I want to go to Sea World." Kassie voiced her recommendation.

"How long are we going to be here?" Sara asked, only to confirm what she had been previously told.

"A whole week." Grissom said, pulling Sydney out of the high chair and into his lap.

"And there's the beach." Jason mentioned. "I bet there are some hotties there."

Before Grissom or Sara could say anything, their food arrived. They ate while continuing the discussion of what tomorrow would bring, and they didn't make a decision until back at the room, when Sara told Jason and Kassie to go to bed. Both kids said goodnight and happily retreated to their shared bedroom, excited as to what events would transpire.

Grissom was poised in one of the big armchairs feeding a bottle to Sydney. Sara looked at him, amazed at how content he looked. "Well, I'm off to bed."

He looked up as she walked by.

"I'll be waiting." Her voice was low and seductive.

Grissom didn't wait until Sydney was finished with her bottle before burping and laying her down into the crib. He quickly went off in search of Sara.

It didn't take long to find her, she was stretched out on her stomach, and she was stark naked. With a sigh he locked the door and quickly removed his attire, before stretching out beside her. She rolled over to look at him.

"Make love to me."

A look of concern crossed his face. "Are you sure you're ready for that?"

Sara nodded. "I thought I would be fine the first time, but it was too soon. I'm sure now. I want you so bad." She moved to convince him using her lips.

Grissom was quick to return the gesture as his hands roamed her flesh. He pulled her on top of him and let her take the lead. "You're sure?" He huffed out after she moved her mouth to his neck.

Sara sat up and glared down at him. "You ask that one more time..."

"I just don't want this to hurt like last time."

"For the last time, I'm fine. It's been what, three months since I gave birth, and since that failed night you have treated me like glass. No more." She took his hands in hers and lowered herself down, sucking in a breath as she took him in.

Grissom threw his head back in the pleasure he had missed. Sara held onto his hands as for the first time in what seemed like ages, they were able to enjoy themselves. They came together, attempting to keep their cries to a dull roar, as young ears were not far away.

Sara tried to remain in Grissom's strong, gentle grasp for as long as she could. She could hear Jason and Kassie in the main room of the suite, God knows what they were doing, but as long as they were also entertaining Sydney, she could rest longer. The night never seemed to end. After their first bout they laid in the dark talking. It was something that they had never done, then Grissom began touching her again, and in no time at all it was time for round two.

She finally pulled away from him, the need to use the bathroom was too strong. Suddenly it was something that Catherine had mentioned to her a while back that had Sara staring at herself in the mirror. Her doctor had also mentioned a similar concern; only Catherine was aiming to win money. An unconscious hand went to her stomach.

Grissom silently joined her. When she looked back up into the mirror, Sara saw the question in his eyes before he said it.

"What's wrong?" He wrapped his arms around her, lowering his voice to a whisper. "Did I hurt you?"

She shook her head. "No. I was thinking about the chances of me getting pregnant again so soon."

"Oh. I guess I forgot about that."

"As did I." She looked back down to her stomach. "I'm not ready for another one. Not yet."

Grissom sighed as he understood her concern. Desperate to get off of the subject, "Hey, want to join me in that oversized shower?"

Sara turned around to look at him. "You'll have to keep your hands to yourself."

He put his hands in the air. "I'll be good."

After a breakfast delivered by room service, they headed to the beach. Sara carried a basket filled with towels, sunscreen, a few plastic toys, and water in one arm; in the other was Sydney's diaper bag, filled with anything she might need at a moments notice. Grissom carried Sydney to a vacant, oversized umbrella that was placed in the sand. Before they had a chance to set anything down, Jason and Kassie tore off towards the water. Sara yelled after them, but they ignored her as they splashed into the cresting waves. She left Grissom with Sydney as she went after them, her concern more towards Kassie. He cradled the baby in one arm as he fished out a large towel and spread it over the shaded sand, before gently laying her down on it. She laughed as she looked up at him from her back.

He glanced back down to the beach to see Sara playing in the shallow water with Kassie and Jason. Grissom smiled and removed his shirt before laying out another towel next to the one Sydney was on. He settled next to his daughter and dangled one of her toys over her head as she tried to grab it.

Sara returned shortly with Kassie and dug out a small plastic shovel for her to play in the sand with at the water's edge. She then placed a towel in the sun and lay on her back. Grissom continued to play with Sydney, while keeping an eye on Kassie as she played.

"This was a great idea." Sara commented with her eyes closed, as her body baked in the late morning sun.

"Hmm." Grissom agreed.

Kassie repeatedly made her way from the pile of sand she had mounded to the shaded area where her parents were. Exchanging toys on each trip.

"My skin's hot." She commented.

Sara sat up. "Mine too. Come on, lets go cool off in the water."

Kassie ran to the water, beating Sara and she plunged into it.

"Where's Jason?" Sara asked, not having seen the teen for the past hour.

Kassie continued to splash in the water, "He's over there."

Sara looked where Kassie's hand pointed, only to see Jason surrounded by three girls in bikinis. She shook her head and escorted Kassie back up the sand. "Come on, I'll put more sunscreen on you."

When they returned, both Sydney and Grissom had dozed off. Kassie quickly returned back to her sandpile, while Sara just admired Grissom. She smiled when he smiled.

"What?"

"I'm just admiring the view."

"Like what you see?"

"Why yes I do." She kneeled over him, placing a kiss on his lips. "Look at what your son is doing."

Grissom followed Sara's pointing hand. "That wasn't me at fourteen."

"You mean good looking, or picking up girls."

"Both."

"I doubt the good looking part." She leaned back over and kissed him, before returning to her towel.

Sara lay on her stomach and watched Kassie.

"How do you feel?"

Grissom sat up. "Totally relaxed."

"I meant about the kids."

"Sara,..." He paused to give his answer with a facial expression.

"I was just curious. If you knew it would all happen the way it has up until this point, would you do it again?"

Grissom grabbed his sunglasses and crawled over to her. "In a heartbeat." He whispered, before placing a soft kiss to her cheek. "I need a favor."

"And that would be?"

"I want to go sit with my other daughter, but I'm white as a ghost."

Sara smiled, "Turn around."

Once he had enough sun screen on, Grissom made his way down to the water's edge and sat with Kassie.

"Hi Daddy. Wanna play with me?"

"Sure."

Grissom sat with her, forming small mountains of sand with his hands. He would occasionally glance over to Sara, and she would smile back. Jason approached him several times asking if he could take some water to his new 'friends'.

The afternoon passed faster than intended and they retreated to the hotel room to prepare for the evening at Sea World. Sara had called ahead and gotten them tickets for the night shows. She was concerned at first, about taking Sydney along, but when they entered the gates to the park, there were strollers everywhere. She didn't feel so guilty about it after that.

They spent the rest of the night at the park. Sara pushed a sleeping Sydney; Grissom carried an unconscious Kassie, while Jason carried the stuffed killer whale Grissom had won her along with the one he won himself.

Once they reached their hotel room, Grissom helped Kassie into her pajamas, while Sara laid Sydney down. Jason collapsed on his bed, and soon Grissom and Sara were sleeping soundly in theirs. The day was successful and Grissom fell asleep, dawning a smile on his face with Sara wrapped up in his arms.

* * *

Ok, just because I was able to get this chapter off, doesn't mean I will be able to update as soon as I would like. So, it might be another week or more before I can update, and then it might take me some time to get back on target. Damn computers, can't write GSR without them. Thanks for understanding. 

TDCSI


	27. Chapter 27

Oh, my God. A week without a computer is hell. But the DHL guy made me very, very happy today. Not like that, get your head out of the gutter. Dorks. So, out of three beta's; one is on vacation, the other is near death, or so she says, and thespoon is chillin' at home. And with all of my fancy, smancy new programs on this hog, I think I faired alright.

* * *

Teens & Tribulations

Chapter 27

The next day brought all of the excitement that Six Flags had to offer. Jason and Grissom separated from Sara and the girls to take on the roller coasters, and Sara was more than happy to entertain them. They met up at one of the park restaurants for lunch.

"So, did you get scared?" Sara asked Jason about the coasters knowing how Grissom is.

"No, but I think I was the adult the whole time."

Grissom glared at Jason as he chewed on his hamburger. He swallowed it before responding. "You keep the adrenaline pumping if you go from coaster to coaster as fast as possible."

"Don't you mean epinephrine?" Sara paused and waited for his reaction.

He stopped midway from taking another bite to look at her, he knew exactly what she was getting at, and damn if it didn't turn him on. She smiled knowing that she had caught him off guard with her comment.

"Hey, I've got an idea."

They both looked at Jason waiting for him to continue.

Once again, they closed the park down and headed to their hotel, Grissom still had Sara's roller coaster comment on his mind. And there was only one way he could be rid of it.

"Hey, Jason."

"Yeah."

"Could you watch the girls for a while, Mom and I would like to go down to the bar for a few drinks."

"We do?"

Grissom turned to face her. "Yeah, we do."

She gave him a confused look but shrugged her shoulders in agreement.

"So? I'll give you babysitting money."

"Sure, they'll just sleep anyway."

"Thanks." Grissom handed Jason a five dollar bill. "There's more where that came from if I don't get any complaints from Kassie."

"Oh, you won't."

Grissom smiled and escorted Sara down stairs. Only when they bypassed the bar did she ask, "Gil, where are we going?"

"I'm taking my girl to the beach."

"Oh." Sara felt her body react as it knew what was to come.

They walked the few blocks to the beach where the street lights ended and the moonlight began. The water was highlighted as the waves crested before rolling on to the sand. Grissom bent over and removed his shoes and socks, Sara followed suit. He took her hand and they walked down the beach as the water would come up and splash against their legs.

"It's so peaceful."

"And you're so beautiful."

Sara blushed, "Gil Grissom, are you hoping to get lucky tonight?"

"Maybe. Your little roller coaster comment earlier has left me with the urge..." he pulled her around so she was flush against his body. He lowered his face to kiss the sensitive flesh beneath her ear. "...to make you climax over and over. Just like going up and down the hills of a roller coaster."

Sara melted in his hands as he spoke his little sweet nothings into her ear. He briefly looked around to make sure they were indeed alone before laying her down on the sand. With their legs being washed over by the waves, Grissom kept his promise as they let their orgasms wash over them.

Jason knew exactly what his parents were doing, who were they fooling. He prodded through his swimming trunks from the other day until he found that special little piece of paper.

"Is this Ashley...its Jason...?"

He only had to wait five minutes before the soft knock came at the door. Jason released a breath of anxiety as he pulled it open to reveal the elegant brunette sanding before him.

"Hi."

"Hi. Come in." He stepped back allowing her to enter.

"Wow! I wish my parents could get us something like this." She walked further into the room noticing the crib. "Is this your little sister?"

"One of them, the other is asleep in our room."

Ashley turned around to face him. "So, if they are both asleep where are we supposed to watch movies?"

"Follow me." Jason led her into Grissom and Sara's room.

"Is this your parents' room?"

"Yeah, but they'll be gone a while." He moved over to the love seat that sat in front of the big screen TV, and patted the spot next to him. "You're not afraid, are you?"

She just smiled before joining him. Jason started the movie and instantly put his arm around Ashley. She snuggled into his gesture and they both looked back at the TV.

While the movie was interesting, Jason found her much more entertaining. He gave her a small peck on the cheek then waited for her permission to continue. If anything, Grissom had taught him to be a gentleman with a woman, and he was definitely turning into a ladies' man. She kissed him back on the cheek before brushing her lips lightly on his. Jason kissed her back, he slid his tongue out to graze her lower lip and she graciously opened her mouth to him.

As he kissed her fully, Jason gently pushed her back down on the small couch and covered her body with his. Ashley knew where this was leading and stopped him briefly.

"Wait." she spoke out of breath.

"What?" Jason replied in the same manner.

"What about...you know?"

He smiled knowing exactly what she was talking about. "Don't worry, I have a condom."

She gave a small smile then pulled him back down to her.

The door opened and Grissom escorted Sara back into the suite. Jason was sitting on the couch watching a movie with the volume turned way down.

"Hey."

"Hey, yourself. Everything go alright?"

Jason smiled and nodded.

"Good. Here." Grissom handed him a fifty dollar bill this time. "Thank you, were they good?"

"They never woke up."

Sara walked over to observe Sydney as she dreamed.

"Well, I'm off to bed. Night Mom, Dad."

"Goodnight." they responded in unison.

They went into their room.

"I need a shower; I've got sand in my hair."

Grissom just smiled. "Want company?"

Sara just smiled and Grissom was right behind her.

After their shower excursion, Grissom settled into bed as Sara went to retrieve a fussing Sydney. She sat up on the bed and nursed her while Grissom watched. After a moment she noticed something out of place.

"That couch moved."

"Huh?" Grissom sat up to see where she was looking.

"That couch. It's been moved. See the marks on the carpet?"

"The maid might have moved it." He brushed it off and settled back down.

"No, the past few days it's been right on those spots, now it's not."

"You sure are suddenly observant, are you trying to tell me you are ready to come back to the lab?"

"Well I am, but no. Look Gil." This time she got out of bed and went over to the small couch.

Grissom just watched as she bent over to investigate. A smile cracked his lips as he watched observed her.

While Sara held Sydney in one arm, she reached out to brace herself. She pulled back with lightning speed.

Grissom sat up. "What?"

"It's wet."

He raised an eyebrow and got up to join her. He placed his hand on the same spot hers had been. It was indeed wet. Intrigued, Grissom leaned over and sniffed the spot.

"You know that's gross, right?"

He ignored her and inhaled once again.

"Well?"

Grissom rocked back onto his heels. "It smells like vaginal fluid."

"You're kidding, right?"

He shook his head.

"How can you be so sure?"

"I think I've had enough experience, don't you?"

Sara blushed a gave a sly grin. "Well I know it's not mine, we never did it on this couch."

"No, but the fact that it's still damp, that's what concerns me more."

"You don't think..."

"I don't know what to think. It only takes an hour for fluid like this to dry. We were gone what, not quite three hours?"

"Hold on. Here." Sara passed Sydney to Grissom as she jumped to her feet and ran into the bath room.

Grissom was confused but knew she had a good reason for whatever it was that she was doing. She even left the room, but he remained patient as he cradled his daughter.

Sara soon returned. "I found it."

"Found what?" He stood more curious than ever.

"Well, not 'it', but what used to house 'it'." Sara held up the opened condom wrapper.

Grissom was shocked. "I can't believe him."

"I can't believe the girl. I mean, I know I never slept with a guy on our first night together."

"You did with me."

"Yeah, but you're different. I've known you for a long time. This girl's knownhim what, a few hours from the day before. Does that not say whore or what?"

"Sara."

"I'm as serious as a heart attack, we really need to do something about him, this," Sara raised the condom wrapper. "..Was obviously planned."

Grissom sighed, "I gave it to him."

"You did what?"

"I just wanted him to have them, just in case."

"When?"

"After the incident with Lindsey, I got him some condoms. Sara, I'm not promoting his promiscuous activities, but if he's going to go about doing them anyway, I'd rather he be smart about it."

"I'm shocked; I don't know what to say."

"I'll talk with him again when we get back to Vegas, I promise."

"Might have to do it before then, otherwise he'll be fornicating with every teen girl he can get his hands on."

She took Sydney from Grissom and returned her to her crib. He climbed back into bed and when Sara joined him, he enveloped her with his strong arms.

"These kids are growing up so fast; I'm not so sure I can keep up."

Grissom kissed the top of her head. "You're doing a wonderful job. Try and rest, it's been a long night."

Sara sighed and let the warmth of him comfort her as she drifted off to sleep.

* * *

So, the many reviews I have received were awesome. Thank you for that. I'm sorry to those about the lack of describing what all San Diego has to offer, I've never been there, but after doing my little bit of research, Jess and I are definitely going to have to check it out. So thanks to all once again, I'm going to start writing like a mad woman now that I have a computer again. I'm so happy you can't even imagine, well except for Jess, she had to hear my shrieks when I found out my computer had arrived. Tootles.

TDCSI


	28. Chapter 28

Thanks to all who are reading and leaving wonderful reviews. Humongous thanks to Just Thinking, damn girl you got skills. This chapter is so much better after she kicked my ass. And thanks to thegreatbluespoon, just wait, because of her this story is going to go into orbit. She's got ideas for everyone but herself, but we're working on that.

* * *

Teens & Tribulations

Chapter 28

The vacation progressed without another incident. Of course that may have had to do with the fact that anytime Jason expressed interest in spending time with a teenage girl, Sara quickly shot the idea down making an excuse about already having plans for the family. Grissom was still floored by the fact that Jason had had sex with a girl while they were on vacation. He figured after getting caught the first time, Jason would've been more careful. It was still bothering him that Jason was only fourteen and was having sex. The worst part was the fact that he was dating Catherine's daughter and seemed to show no concern about cheating on her.

It was late in the afternoon by the time they got on the road. Kassie was reliving all of the things they had done while in San Diego. Jason was enthralled in his iPod, and Sydney fell asleep in no time.

Darkness soon enveloped them, which was fine because the desert didn't provide much for driving scenery. When both Jason and Kassie had dozed off in the back seat, Sara decided it would be safe to have a private conversation with her husband.

"Gil," Sara said in a soft voice as she turned in her seat to face him.

"Hmm." He was casual, keeping his eyes on the road ahead.

"You need to talk to him." Her voice was still soft, yet insistent as she lovingly placed a hand on his forearm

"Who?" He looked at her slightly confused.

"Who do you think?" She pointed to the back seat. "He's heading down a bad path, next thing you know Lindsey will wind up pregnant."

"Sara, I've never been put in this situation before, just give me some time to think about it." He was beginning to get edgy, and keeping his voice down was getting to be a challenge.

"I'm just saying…" She was doing much better at keeping her voice down than Grissom.

He just gripped the steering wheel tighter and kept his focus straight ahead, indicating that the conversation was over.

All three kids were still sound asleep in the back seat as they approached the Vegas lights. Lights of another kind had Grissom exiting off of the interstate prematurely.

Sara was dozing herself, but when she felt the truck slow, she opened her eyes. "What's wrong?"

"I just want to check this out." Grissom spoke without looking at her.

She raised her head to see the familiar flashing red and blue lights. "Are you kidding? Technically you are still on vacation," she softly admonished.

Grissom put the truck in park. "I'll be just a minute," he whispered as he climbed out and gently closed the door to avoid waking the sleeping brood in the backseat.

Sara sighed as she pulled the keys out of the ignition, and then it was her turn to quickly climb out of the truck and carefully close and lock the door. When she reached the familiar yellow crime scene tape, she was stopped by an officer she had never met before.

"I'm sorry ma'am; I can't let you cross the tape." The officer smiled, but his voice was firm.

"It's okay, I'm a CSI with the Las Vegas Crime Lab." She gave him a polite smile.

"Ma'am without proper identification I can't let you through."

"She's with me." A voice called out from beyond the tape.

As the officer turned around to look at Grissom, Sara dipped under the tape to join him. He took her arm and they walked towards the commotion.

"Gil, Sara, what are you guys doing here?"

"Ask him." Sara poked his side, still slightly annoyed.

"I saw the lights."

"And you just couldn't stay away from dead bodies any longer?"

"Nice to see you too Jim. Wanna fill me in?" Grissom pointed in the direction of Warrick and Catherine, who were processing the area surrounding a lifeless body that was sprawled out at the bottom of a ravine.

"A hiker found the body, called it in. So far she's a Jane Doe." Brass stepped away as an officer called for his attention.

Sara stood next to Grissom and watched the others work. "Did you see that?" She whispered so only he could hear.

"See what?"

"That!" Sara pointed down towards Catherine and Warrick.

Grissom watched intently as when Warrick moved around Catherine, his hand would rest on the small of her back as he passed her. With a slightly amused look on his face, Grissom glanced back at Sara.

"Come on, they've got it under control, and I'm tired. Let's go home." Sara stepped back and pulled his arm encouraging him to follow along.

The three younger occupants were still asleep when they got back to the truck. Careful not to suddenly wake anyone they climbed in before completing their drive home. Their exhaustion prevented them from bothering to unload the truck, well except for the sleeping bodies, before going to bed.

* * *

The next morning Grissom woke up to find an empty bed. He lifted his head and noticed a note on Sara's pillow.

_Gil, _

_Went grocery shopping, I have Sydney but Kassie and Jason are still asleep. Maybe you can "talk" with him. I'll bring back breakfast._

_Love, Sara._

Talk with Jason; she wanted him to bring up the incident in San Diego. Grissom rolled onto his back and put his hands over his face dreading the impending conversation. Sex, he was going to have to talk about sex again. Not his favorite subject of the past few months, especially when it involved his teenage son.

He climbed out of bed, pulled on his robe, and ventured out into the kitchen. Not surprising to him, Jason was sitting at the breakfast bar drinking a glass of water.

"Good morning." His son cheerily greeted him.

"Morning." Grissom said through a yawn as he pulled open the refrigerator door only to be greeted by nothing. "Good thing your mom went shopping."

Jason nodded before taking another swig of his water.

Grissom moved to sit next to Jason. He took a deep breath, cleared his throat, and begun. "What's her name?"

Jason only lifted his head. "Who?"

"The girl from San Diego."

"Oh, the one I was always hanging out with?"

"If that is what you're calling it." He looked at Jason and raised an eyebrow.

"Ashley."

"Ashley what?"

"I don't know her last name. She was digging me though, she thought I was sixteen." He didn't even try to hide his pride at the fact that he was able to fool the girl.

"How old is she?"

"I think she said she was seventeen."

Grissom closed his eyes and rubbed his hands over his face, the morning whiskers scratching the palms of his hands. "What are you going to do about Lindsey?"

"What does Lindsey have to do with this?"

"She has just as much to do with this as the other girl."

Jason couldn't look at Grissom, so he just stared down into his water.

Grissom sighed, "Look, I gave those to you for just in case, not as an excuse to have sex, especially with a girl you hardly know."

"What should I do?"

"Jason, I've been Catherine's friend since before Lindsey was born. She calls me her Uncle and I see her as my niece. I don't want to see her hurt anymore than you do." After several awkward seconds of silence, Grissom stood. "Come help me unload the truck."

They went out into the garage and removed all of the luggage from the backend of the truck. By the time they had the bags in the house, Kassie was up rummaging through the empty fridge.

"I'm hungry."

"I know, Mom is getting groceries and breakfast. She should be back shortly." Grissom explained as he carried his and Sara's bags to their room.

Jason took his luggage and helped Kassie with hers as they climbed the stairs. After he had his bags stowed away, Jason returned to the kitchen only to be escorted by Grissom to the basement. He helped feed the many specimens as Grissom attempted to figure out what to say.

"Look Jason, school will be starting again soon, baseball, girls…they all take up time and energy, and there are only so many hours in a day." He moved over to drop a cricket into the scorpion's terrarium, and continued with his back to Jason. "I can't make any choices for you, but I can tell you that if your grades fall, the first thing to go will be baseball." He then turned to face Jason. "The choice is yours to make. I hope you make the right one." Grissom gave him an encouraging smile.

Jason responded with a slight nod. "Does Mom know?"

Grissom stopped; confused for a moment before realizing the subject had been changed. "Yeah, she knows."

"What do you think Lindsey would do if she found out?"

With a smile Grissom replied, "Well, if she's anything like her mother, she'll kill you. Lindsey cares a great deal for you, break her heart and Catherine will break you in half."

"Guys, I'm home." Sara's voice called down into the basement.

They both headed up to help with unloading the groceries so they could uncover the doughnuts Sara had purchased.

"Kassie." She hollered up the stairs.

Grissom set up Sydney in her high chair as Jason dove into the box of doughnuts. Sara sat down, and very shortly Kassie could be heard bounding down the stairs.

"Here..." Sara stopped mid sentence.

Grissom and Jason looked up to see what had rendered Sara speechless.

Kassie had somehow during the luggage unloading got into one of Sara's bags, the one that contained her toiletries and makeup. She had a combination of blue and pink eye shadow that was streaked nearly to her ears, and blush; her cheeks were beyond rosy. Thankfully she didn't know what to do with the mascara.

Jason snickered in his attempt to hide his all out laughter as he pulled apart his doughnut. Grissom mirrored Sara, still staring in shock, wondering what on earth had possessed her to put on makeup.

"Thank you." Kassie said taking the extended paper plate from Sara and sat down next to Jason.

The breakfast conversation was awkward, as Sara tried not to broach the subject of the makeup. Kassie helped Sara clean up and lay Sydney down for the remainder of the morning.

Grissom went back into the bedroom closed the drapes, and attempted to catch up on sleep as he was to return to work that night.

Sara cleaned the excessive make-up off of Kassie before helping her unpack and put her things away. Of course after a week the laundry was in a mountain. Jason had already started his, so while she waited, Sara quietly unpacked her and Grissom's luggage.

As she was returning items to the medicine cabinet, Sara found an unopened box of condoms in his shaving kit. She took a deep breath, what was the point of buying them if they weren't going to use them, but getting pregnant again was not an option, at least not right now.

As she worked her thoughts began to wander; she thought about her family, and how to her it is perfect A slight grin crossed her face. She continued to stow away their things when she saw his field kit out of the corner of her eye. She missed work, missed the sarcasm from the guys, missed the science of it. It wasn't that she didn't enjoy being at home, but the lack of civil adult conversation was something she also missed. Sara looked through the bathroom door at Grissom as he slept, recharging his body for the night. In a way she envied him, he was able to work, do his little experiments, and spend some time with the kids. She wanted the same

Sara sat on the back porch watching Jason throw pitches at the back fence. The boy had spirit, and seemed to know exactly what he wanted. After his first time pitching to the fence, Grissom had purchased a foam box that was normally used for target practice by bow hunters. At least this way he wouldn't break the fence. Kassie was more than willing to help, as she would try to throw back the ball once it had been pitched.

She knew that other brothers and sisters with this much of an age gap didn't get along like these two do, then again, they weren't your average everyday siblings. Jason would protect Kassie if it meant giving his own life. As she watched her children, Sara thought about what she could say to Grissom to convince him that her returning to the lab was a good idea. Part time would more than suffice right now; the kids would be starting school again soon, so Jason would always be home at night. She was thinking over all of the possible scenarios when she heard happy gurgles approaching from behind her.

"You're up early."

"I'm getting too much sleep." He sat down beside her and bounced Sydney on his leg. "How long has he been throwing like that?"

She shrugged her shoulders, "I have no clue."

"Jason." Grissom called out waiting for the teen to face him before he continued. "How many have you thrown?"

He thought briefly, "Around fifty. I think."

"Don't you think that's enough, you haven't thrown in a week, keep it up and you'll ruin that arm..."

Now was the time to strike. "I want to go back to work."

"Go put on some ice and...what?" He turned to Sara.

"I want to go back to the lab, just part time at first, until Sydney is older. Jason can watch them at night, and when they start school I'll make sure I'm home first thing in the morning."

"You know that is impossible sometimes."

"We can make it work," Sara said directly with confidence.

He turned to look back at the other kids as they picked up their things. "I guess I thought you were happy here."

"I am, I just need...I don't know what I need. Maybe I need to go back to the lab, have it wear me out again, and then I'll be more than willing to stay home full time."

The last time he had pushed to get his way, he spent a day on Catherine's couch. Deep down he wanted to say no, make up some sort excuse as to why she couldn't return, but in the end he gave up. "Fine, but not tonight."

Sara wrapped her arms around him and placed a sloppy kiss on his cheek. "Thank you so much."

"Sure."

She was happy, he wasn't. He thought for a moment about telling her that he wanted her to remain in the lab, but knew that was not a negotiable subject. The power this woman had over him was unreal.

After being gone a week, Grissom walked through the doors to the crime lab. Sara's request was playing in his head over and over, that was until the one man he did not want to deal with approached him.

"Gil, I need to talk to you."

"Now?"

"Well, that was the idea."

Grissom ground his teeth as he walked to his office with Conrad close behind. Before he could even prepare himself for Ecklie's speech, it was just blurted out into the air.

"I want you to find a replacement for your wife."

His eyes grew significantly. "Excuse me?"

"The lab's become short staffed, she's been on leave, and we need to get more people in here. So, you need to hire replacement."

"Isn't it against the law to fire a woman who's on maternity leave?"

"I don't want you to fire her, just find a suitable replacement for the field. Sara can stay in the lab."

Grissom shook his head, "That won't work. She and I just discussed tonight about her coming back part time."

Ecklie nodded, "Sure, until her replacement arrives. Look Gil, we need more people in the field. Day and swing are constantly understaffed, you..." Conrad scoffed to himself, "...you've had the only consistency in staffing for years."

Feeling sarcastic, "Gee I wonder why that is?"

"Quit being a smart ass Gil, it doesn't suit you." Ecklie turned and left.

Grissom gritted his teeth so hard it began to fester up a migraine.

* * *

Yeah, just had to bring that ass Ecklie into it didn't I. Well, just wait until you see what thespoon and I are concocting. Please keep reviewing, they have been great.

TDCSI


	29. Chapter 29

So here's another update. Please read it before you blow your hand off or any other miscellaneous extremities setting off fireworks. Thanks to those who continue to review, you guys rock. Big monstrous thank you to Just Thinking, I'm getting better and better with each passing chapter. And thegreatbluespoon, props to her for the ending and the next few chapters to come; details are at the bottom. Enjoy.

* * *

Teens & Tribulations

Chapter 29

All he wanted to do was leave, go home and be with his family. Grissom scoffed; family, only a short time ago he was thinking he was too old for the hopes of one. Now he was a husband and a father of three.

A knock brought him back to reality. "Ecklie informed me about finding a replacement for Sara, what's up with that?" Catherine moved in and took a seat as if she owned the place.

Grissom rolled his eyes. "He wants to keep Sara in the lab, saying something about how we're short staffed for the field."

"And you're not happy with that?"

Grissom sat up and folded his hands on his desk. "We discussed this the other day; Sara wants to start coming back part time. I don't see a problem with that, but it's evident that Conrad thinks he can just push Sara out of the lab."

Catherine's face turned to shock. "He never said anything about firing her."

"No, I think he's planning on making her so mad she'll quit and want to stay home."

"Ha! Not Sara."

Silence fell upon them after that last remark as they both sat pondering what course of action they should take next. Grissom sat looking past Catherine, pursing his lips; Catherine was looking at the picture that was sitting proudly on his desk. She smiled as she remembered the day she took it. Sara was sitting in a hospital rocker cradling a newborn while Grissom, Jason, and Kassie stood proudly around her.

"I got it." Grissom looked to Catherine as she once again broke his train of thought. "Since I technically am Sara's supervisor, I'll keep her while you find a suitable replacement for her full time slot."

"In other words, just hire another CSI."

"Exactly. How long is it going to take you to find someone anyway?"As always she answered her own question. "Weeks, a month?" Grissom went to answer but was cut off again. "Then Sara can work part time for a while, and if she decides to come back full time, we'll just have more bodies around so that would mean more nights off for the rest of us."

He never knew how, but Catherine always seemed to have it all figured out.

Grissom checked his watch as he pulled onto his street. It was nearly ten in the morning. He and Catherine spent over an hour trying to figure out how to make everyone but Ecklie happy. Just as he pulled into the driveway, the garage door opened.

Jason emerged with the lawn mower. He gave a quick wave before starting it, and proceeding to mow the front lawn.

For a moment Grissom just sat and watched as Jason walked back and forth before exiting his Denali andheading into the house. Kassie was the first one to greet him.

"Daddy, Daddy, guess what?!"

Grissom dropped his briefcase just in time to hoist her up before she crashed into him. "What?"

"Momma says I get to go to the first grade this year." Her voice was several octaves higher than normal as she never attempted to hide her excitement.

He smiled. "That's right. It also means you'll learn new things."

"Will I still get to color?"

"I'm sure you will." Grissom set her down and watched as she headed to the back yard at a full sprint.

Hunger took him into the kitchen, where he found Sara cleaning up the breakfast dishes as she discussed the matter of her return to the lab with Sydney.

"Your uncle is going to watch you tonight." Sydney gurgled. "Yes he is, 'cause Momma's going back to work with Daddy." Her hand moved over and she gave Sydney a quick tickle which elicited a brief laugh out of the infant.

Grissom didn't want to interrupt her, so he just made his way to the fridge.

"Your breakfast is in the microwave."

His hand stopped inches from the handle, as he looked back over his shoulder to see Sara's back to him. "Thanks."

Sara turned to Sydney. "See, Momma has this freaky connection with Daddy; I know when he's in the same room without even looking."

Even though the child had no idea what she was saying, it still made her laugh. Grissom even giggled. "I think you know when I'm within a hundred yards of you."

"Sometimes." She moved over and kissed him, Sydney laughed. "Hey don't laugh. Do you know how long it took me to be able to do that?"

"Well let's see..." he moved a finger to his lips as he pondered.

Sara turned to throw a towel at Grissom before he had a chance to fully answer her question.

"It was a joke, calm down."

They shared a smile and Grissom began the reheating process of his belated breakfast.

While he was eating, Sara put Sydney down for a nap, before returning to the kitchen. "Gil I was wondering..." She started as she returned to the room.

Might as well get it over with. "Ecklie wants me to get a replacement." Grissom suddenly interrupted without even looking up at her.

Sara stopped dead in her tracks, her mouth falling open and her eyes widening. "For me?"

He only nodded, still not risking a glance at her expression.

"Does he want you to fire me?" Sara's voice remained calm, how, even she didn't know.

"No." Grissom simply said before taking another bite of his food.

"Good, otherwise I would sue his ass off. I'm still on maternity leave." Her voice began to drip with annoyance. The chemistry between Ecklie and herself was like baking soda and vinegar. Combine the two and you could make a model volcano erupt.

"I know Catherine and I talked about that. Don't worry we have a plan." It was all he could say to let Sara know that he was on her side, not the lab's.

"I'm sure she does." They looked at each other briefly before Sara completely changed the subject. "Who's mowing?"

Grissom looked to where the sound of the lawn mower was coming from. "Jason, I think he wants something."

Sara smiled, "I'll let you make the yes or no decision on that. I'm sure it has to do with a guy thing anyway."

It only took Jason two hours to mow and weed eating the yard. Grissom was already asleep when he finished, and so was Sara, trying to rest before her return to the lab. He kept Kassie and Sydney occupied while his parents slept.

"Jason, will you help me feed my fishes?" Kassie asked extending the small container of fish flakes to him.

"Sure." He moved from the couch to where the aquarium stood proudly in the living room, and placed the flakes into her hand, watching with her as she threw them in. "Man, Fritter's getting big." Jason leaned over to look at the Shubunkin as the fish began to eat.

"Uh-huh. He's bigger thanCha-cof-ski now." Kassie made her best attempt at pronouncing the name as she pointed to the Calico Fantail.

"Kassie that's Tchaikovsky.And look at Booger." He mentioned the fish he had picked out and named.

He admired the fish with her until Sydney began to cry. Jason rushed to the nursery hoping that he got to her in time.

"Shhh, it's okay, Bubba's here." He lifted her up and noticed she had quite the load in her diaper. "It's sad I know. I've changed more diapers than Mom or Dad."

Jason quickly had her changed and took her with him back into the living room to watch TV, and began to ponder how he was going to approach the subject of going to a concert.

It was nearly four in the afternoon when Sara emerged refreshed and ready to face the night. She found Jason sitting in the living room with the girls. He had Sydney sitting in his lap, her back propped up against his stomach. Kassie was next to him as they watched the Disney classic, _The Jungle Book._

"Hey, have you been watching them all day?" She asked standing at the threshold between the living room and kitchen.

Jason turned his head sharply, startled by Sara's sudden appearance. "Yeah."

"It's funny, your dad said something earlier about you wanting something." Sara let out a small laugh, but when Jason didn't even smile she knew Grissom was right. "What?"

Jason sucked in a breath, held it, and released it before proceeding. "I got an email from Rifle; he's got extra Ludacris tickets for tonight…"

"Luda what!?" She shook her head, unable to keep up with what's popular in the world of the teenager.

"Just listen. It's a concert at the events center…"

"Who's all going to go?" Sara butted in.

"Dirk's going, and some other guys will be there. Please?"

It was then that Sara remembered what she had told Grissom earlier. "Ask your dad."

Sara gathered Sydney and left Jason to ponder how he was going to convince his father to let him attend a concert. He was still on probation and Grissom rarely let him stay out past ten at night.

Grissom emerged only minutes later. He passed Jason sitting on the couch on his way to the kitchen to help Sara with dinner before Greg arrived to baby-sit."Need any help?"

"Nah, but Jason wants to ask you something." She stopped what she was doing and looked at him.

"He does?" Grissom narrowed his eyebrows in confusion before turning his back to her.

She smiled and watched him head back into the living room, and then continued to prepare their dinner.

"Mom says you wanted to ask me something."

Jason's head shot up surprised at Grissom's sudden presence. "Ah...well...there's this concert and I was invited."

"A concert?" Grissom asked intrigued as looked over his son.

Jason nodded, "A few of the guys are going, I asked Lindsey, but Catherine told her no. I've never been to a concert before."

Grissom raised his eyebrows and sat down in the recliner across from the teen. He closed his hands together and stared down the young man sitting across from him.

Jason was convinced he could hear the second hand ticking on Grissom's watch before anything was said.

"Okay, but, there and nowhere else. If I find out that you lied to me, God help you, because I will ground you until you're thirty." Grissom wasn't very good at threats, but it was the only way to get his point across that if Jason were to lie to him, there would be hell to pay

Jason breathed a sigh of relief. "Deal." He jumped up and ran upstairs.

Grissom remained at his post, thinking over if he had made the right decision. He could only assume that since Jason was more relieved about being able to attend, that he would respect his wishes.

After dinner Grissom stood in front of the bay window looking out to the street. He took a sip of his coffee when a new Red Ford Mustang pulled up and honked its horn. The thundering of feet coming down the stairs caused him to turn and interfere with last minute instructions.

"Home by midnight, nowhere else. Greg will be here"

"Got it." Jason said as he ran by and out the door.

Sara joined Grissom at his post watching as Jason ran to the awaiting car and climbed into the back seat.

"Stop it."

He just turned his head slightly, but not looking at her. "I just don't fully trust him yet."

"Why did you let him go?"

Grissom shrugged his shoulders, "He's got to regain my trust somehow."

A knock came at the door. "Greg's here." Sara placed a kiss on Grissom's cheek before heading to the door to let Greg in.

Grissom was ready to head to the lab shortly after. He was afraid of being later than normal as Sara kept giving Greg instructions on what to do if the world should come to an end.

"Sara, come on." Grissom called out as he checked his watch for what seemed like the hundredth time.

He remained quiet during the drive, his agitation wafted off of him and Sara could sense it. She decided it was not a good night to start something bad, so she remained quiet as he drove.

As Sara opened her locker, she realized it had been a while since she had been there. Her favorite jacket still hung in the same spot she had left it, a change of clothes, and several personal items. She dug around and found her last prescription for birth control. Maybe going back on the pill would be better than trying to remember a condom every time the fireworks ignited, because with three kids in the house, sex was definitely spontaneous.

"Hey girl. You back already?"

"Hi Warrick. Yeah, but only part time."

He opened his locker and checked his sidearm before placing it in the holster. Sara watched as he handled the gun so smoothly. It had been months since she even held one.

"So, is the house being destroyed as we speak?" He interrupted her thoughts.

"Huh, oh no. Jason's at a concert with some friends, and I conned Greg into watching the girls."

Warrick laughed, "Well he always claimed to be a ladies man."

Sara laughed with him. "True."

Just then Nick walked in. "Sara!" He moved over and hugged her, lifting her off of her feet in the process. "Good to have you back."

"So I've been told."

"Come on you two, if we're late for assignments her husband's going to give us a hard time."

Sara tried to kick at Warrick as he passed. "Not funny."

They sat in the break room enjoying small talk when Catherine walked in.

"Hey, look who's back. Nick, Warrick, Grissom has your slips. Sara, you're with me tonight." She turned to walk out, but quickly stopped. "Oh, and Sara, Grissom says you have to lose the gun."

"What?"

"Yeah, something about you're not up to date on your firearms test. And the only reason you're allowed in the field is because I told him you were going with me. Saddle up." Catherine seemed more than excited about Sara being back.

Sara shrugged her shoulders and left with Catherine. In the past year they had gone from annoyed colleagues to friends. The whole idea shocked them just as much as everyone else. They remained quiet as they walked to the awaiting Denali.

Catherine could only remain quiet for so long, her need for gossip fuel was overwhelming. "So, how was your vacation, how are the kids, did you enjoy the away from home sex?"

"What…Catherine!?" Sara turned in her seat to stare at Catherine, mouth agape.

Catherine started the truck and headed to their scene laughing the entire time. "Seriously Sara."

"Vacation was great, the kids are good, and the sex is none of your business."

"Ha! That means the sex was mind blowing. Or really bad."

Sara smirked and didn't answer.

Grissom sent Nick and Warrick out on their own cases before retreating to his office. After a week away from the lab, the paperwork piled on his desk was astronomical. He pulled a file from the top and sighed as he flipped it open.

After an hour he wanted to call Sara and check in on her, and see how she was getting along. If he called, she would bite his head off for not trusting her, and if he didn't call, his mind would worry all night.

Even though they only worked the scene after the crime had been committed, suspects have been known to return, or some inexperienced cop did a shitty job of clearing the scene. He was her husband, and she was the mother of his children, it was his job to worry.

Grissom picked up the phone and dialed.

"Hello."

"Greg, what's going on? Why do you have the stereo turned up so loud?"

The ambient noise died down. "Uh, Kassie and I are playing games."

"Where's Sydney?" He had that tone in his voice that was reserved for interrogations.

"She's asleep." Kassie shrieked in the background. Greg pulled the phone away from his face and whispered. "Shhh, it's your Dad."

"How can she be asleep with all of that racket? You didn't slip her anything, did you?"

"No, no God no." Greg quickly defended himself. "I guess we just wore her out."

"Or got tired of listening to you." Grissom shot back. "Look, is Jason home yet?" He removed his glasses and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Nope, haven't seen him."

Grissom looked at his watch, it read ten after midnight. "Call me when he gets home will you?"

"Alright."

Grissom hung up without saying goodbye and called Sara.

"Wow, you almost made it three hours, I'm proud of you."

"I've been sitting here for an hour debating on calling. Jason's not home." He sighed in disappointment.

Sara knew all too well this was bound to happen and tried to put his mind at ease. "Maybe it lasted longer than they thought, or they went to get some food. He's fourteen Gil. Remember he's never had a childhood."

"Sara, he's on probation. If he gets caught on the streets after midnight, he could go to jail." He was beginning to get uneasy as the clock continued to tick past midnight.

"Give him another hour. I'm sure everything is alright" She did the best to hide her own concern that began to surface at Jason's absence.

"Sure. How are you guys coming?"

"We'll be back within the hour. I'll get the evidence processing then head home. I guess that means you've talked to Greg?"

"Yes."

Sara heard the tone of his voice. "And?"

He sighed heavily. "You don't want to know."

"I'm sure. I'll see you after a bit. Bye." With a smile Sara hung up the phone figuring Greg was having too much fun with the girls and Grissom didn't approve.

"Bye." He hung up his phone and tried not to think about what his son could be doing.

Sara and Catherine made it back to the lab as she had promised, and was getting ready to head home. She was storing some items away in her locker when her spine began to tingle. A smile cracked her face. Grissom placed his hands on her hips and pressed himself flush against her backside.

He inhaled the scent of her hair. "Mmm. Heading home?"

"Yes. Why?"

"How are you going to get there?" Grissom placed a kiss to her neck.

Sara let her head fall back onto his shoulder. "I'm bumming a ride from Brass. He's waiting for me now."

"Will you wait up for me?" His voice low and seductive.

She smiled. "Of course."

"Good. And if you see my son, tell him he's going to hear it from me."

That brought a laugh out of her. "Okay."

Once they had parted, Grissom retrieved himself a cup of coffee before heading back to his office. Just as he sat down, the phone on his desk rang. He quickly checked his watch before answering; two fifteen.

"Grissom." He was waiting to hear Jason's voice plead for forgiveness.

"Mr. Grissom, I'm Tracy Roberts, a nurse here at Desert Palms."

* * *

Wholly shnikies batman!!! I just want to remind everyone that the majority of this idea came from thespoon, so please direct any hate mail towards her. Stay tuned to see what happens next. And leave a review telling me your hopes and dreams so we can shoot them down.

TDCSI


	30. Chapter 30

First of all, kudos to all that have reviewed, just remember any hate mail be directed to thegreatbluespoon, this was all her folks. You can PM her through her FF site. Big thanks to Just Thinking, for her great beta skills.

Also, you peeps need to bug over to read the story I have concocted with thespoon. In less than two weeks she's going to be chillin' here in Texas with me, and we are hoping to get more reviews for it, 'cause we are such review freaks. Muchos Gracias.

* * *

Teens & Tribulations

Chapter 30

It was like jumping into cold water, socold that it took your breath away. That was how he felt at that very moment. His lungs constricting, heart beating from the adrenaline, face full of shock and concern; the phone nearly fell from his hands. Whatever the nurse had spoken after her initial words were just white noise.

The only thing Grissom kept hearing was: _"Your son was involved in a car accident."_

After that, nothing. He quickly informed the nurse that he was on his way. Grissom rushed out of his office and hurried down the hall looking for Catherine.

"Cath." He was out of breath from his sprint down the hall.

"What's wrong?" To her, he was always like an open book when it came to his body language.

"Jason was in an accident, he's at the hospital…"

"Go, I'll get Sara." Catherine interrupted understanding time was of the essence.

They both rushed out of the lab, people watching as they sprinted to their vehicles. Grissom tore off towards the hospital; Catherine went to get Sara.

The door clicked as the key disengaged the dead bolt. Sara entered to a quiet, semi dark house. She tried not to laugh as the first sight she saw was Greg. He was strung over the couch in a manner that was reserved for passed out drunks. Quietly Sara went up the stairs. She opened Kassie's door and peeked in, the sight of her sleeping comfortably was enough for her. Next she went to Jason's room. He was still absent. Sara made her way back down stairs, suppressing another giggle as she passed Greg. She made it to her final destination and entered. Sydney was also sound asleep, tucked safely in her crib, clutching her stuffed killer whale. Sara kissed her finger and lowered it to her infants' cheek.

Just as she exited the room she heard a knock at the front door. Sara couldn't figure out for the life of her who it could be, but the knocking needed to stop before it woke the dead. When a quick check through the peep hole revealed an agitated Catherine, Sara quickly opened the door.

"Cath what's…"

Catherine pulled her out onto the front porch, she knew what she was about to tell her would send her into orbit. "Sara, listen to me. Apparently Jason was involved in a car accident."

Her hand flew to her mouth. "Oh my God!" Right after panic began to set in. "Where is he? Is he at the hospital? Where's Gil, he knows right?"

"Sara. Sara. Sara!" Catherine practically yelled and grabbed her. "Gil's on his way to the hospital. Is Greg still here?"

"Oh, what…yeah."

"Good, come on."

Sara beat Catherine to her Denali and was attempting to dial Grissom's number as the truck came to life and began to move. There was no answer. "Dammit Gil."

All Catherine could do was attempt to keep her calm and get them there in one piece. "Sara I'm sure he's in the hospital and can't use his phone. We'll be there shortly." As a mother herself she could only think of how she would react if the tables were turned. More than likely she would be much more hysterical and way less cooperative.

Grissom could answer his phone, but after seeing who it was, decided it would be best to talk to her in person instead of over the phone. He knew Sara would start asking question after question, and he wasn't ready to give her any answers.

He stood in the waiting room looking out the large window at the Vegas night sky. At that moment the city looked peaceful and innocent, but Vegas was far from either. Leaning against the glass, one arm propped up over his head, Grissom looked down into the parking lot just in time to see Sara and Catherine run to the emergency room entrance. It didn't take them long to get to where he was waiting.

The door burst open and Sara rushed up to him. "How is he?"

Grissom turned just in time to envelope her in his arms. "I haven't heard."

Sara pulled back. "That's a load of shit. Someone must know; I can't believe no one has told you."

"Sara listen to me." He held her at arm's length. "All I know is he's in surgery. The other car hit on his side of the car." Sara brought a hand to cover her mouth. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. "I guess they rushed him straight to the OR." Grissom released a tense breath of air; he didn't want to say it anymore than hear it again. "It doesn't look good." His voice was low trying to soften the blow.

Yet it still knocked the wind right out of Sara. Tears welled up in her eyes. "No. NO!" She slowly shook her head back and forth as she repeated the words over and over.

He pulled her body back to him and held her tight. Grissom looked over Sara's shoulder to Catherine. She was just hanging back letting them release their emotions. It was weak, but she gave him a forced smile and moved to sit down. Grissom pulled Sara over to a small couch and they sat down still in each others arms.

"The nurse said he's in good hands."

The next two hours went by in absolute silence. Sara remained in Grissom's embrace praying for her son's recovery. He did the same. Catherine had gotten a hold of Greg as he was brought up to speed, and agreed to watch the girls while they waited for any news on Jason's condition.

They remained quiet as the clock ticked away. The doors to the waiting room opened. Three tired heads turned to see the doctor standing in his green scrubs.

"Mr. and Mrs. Grissom?" They both stood and approached him. The doctor let out a sigh that they were all too familiar with. "I don't know how to say this, but I'm sorry.We did everything we could, but his injuries were too severe."

That was all it took for Sara to break down completely. Her legs gave out and she slumped to the floor crying and repeating 'no' as she went. Grissom went to the floor with her pulling her as close to him as he could. Catherine kneeled next to them and put a comforting hand on Sara's back. Tears formed and easily fell from her eyes.

Sara never composed herself. Grissom pulled her with him onto the couch. Catherine stood just in time as Nick and Warrick entered. She quickly ushered them out into the hall. They didn't need to be told what the condition of Jason was, the distress in Sara and Grissom told them what had happened.

She wasn't ready to talk about Jason. "How are the other kids doing?"

Nick was between breaking down in tears and punching the wall, so Warrick answered. "One was DOA; the other is in surgery as well."

The briefest flash of relief crossed Catherine's face. She remembered how it was only hours ago that Lindsey was begging and pleading to go to the concert with Jason. Because she was firm and told her 'no', her daughter was at home, unscathed. She was alsothinking that at least Sara and Grissom weren't the only parents mourning, it wasn't right to think like that but Catherine couldn't help it. "How about the driver?"

Nick looked up; the tears in his eyes didn't hide the anger that lay beyond them. "He walked away."

Warrick placed a hand on his friends shoulder. "He's in lockup sobering up. With the amount of alcohol in his system he should be dead."

Catherine shut her eyes and shook her head, saying that Jason was dead was not possible.

They waited outside of the room for what seemed like hours. Eventually Sara cried herself down to a semi-calm state. Grissom slowly opened the door joining them in the hall. He looked as if he had aged ten years. The first words he spoke were rough sounding. "Cath, would you escort Jason to Doc Robbins." She opened her mouth wanting to know why, but he beat her to it. "I know what protocol says but I don't care. Please Cath." He was as defeated sounding as she had ever remembered him.

She nodded and went to find a nurse and flipped open her phone to call David.

Grissom looked at the faces of Nick and Warrick as they stood and did their best not to look him in the eye. They didn't say anything to him as he went back into the small waiting room, Sara stood into Grissom's embrace, and walked out. Nick and Warrick were right behind him, giving them any support they could as Sara leaned into Grissom.

Warrick took Grissom and Sara home. She was sitting in her dazed state as Grissom opened the back door to the Denali. Warrick took the offered house keys from Grissom and opened the door. He stepped aside as Grissom passed him clutching Sara's hand, and went straight to the bedroom. Greg was awake sitting on the couch as he silently watched Grissom and Sara pass. He turned and looked at Warrick; he had become as good of a CSI as the rest of them. Reading Warrick's expression was all he needed, he knew the worst had happened.

Grissom returned and thanked the both of them. He checked on Kassie and Sydney, they were both still asleep. After seeing his daughters were safe and sound, Grissom decided that he needed something to kill the pain that was beginning to wash over him. He opened the cupboard above the refrigerator and pulled a dusty bottle of scotch from the hidden darkness. His first few drinks were fast, downing the burning amber liquid immediately after he poured it. Grissom grabbed up the bottle, partially full tumbler, and went to sit heavily on the living room couch. There he continued to drown his sorrows and hide his emotions. It had been a while since he had drank a significant amount of scotch, but he didn't care and kept filling and emptying his glass.

An hour passed, the bottle near empty, Grissom was laying on his back staring at the spackling on the ceiling. A soft, warm hand touched his shoulder.

"Daddy."

He didn't want to look at her, not right now. He didn't want to be the one to tell her that her brother, her protector was dead. It would tear her apart as it was Sara and himself. "Mmm."

Kassie moved around and looked at his face. "Is Momma home?"

He tried to smile. "Yeah, she's in bed. Why don't you go lay down with her okay?" With what little energy he had left, Grissom raised a hand and gave a soft stroke to her brown hair.

"Alright." Her voice was so innocent and as she walked away and for the first time, he began to let his tears escape.

Kassie softly padded her way to the bedroom where Sara lay, and pushed open the door. She slowly and carefully climbed into the bed and curled up next to Sara. As her smaller body came in contact with Sara's, it was quickly enveloped in her embrace. She could see her mother's dried tears and the redness around her eyes.

"Momma, what's the matter?"

Sara opened her eyes and looked through the haze into Kassie's young eyes. "Oh sweetie." She tightened her arms around her and sniffled as fresh tear formed. "Remember Jason went out with some friends last night?"

"Yeah."

She sniffled as she continued. "Well while they were on their way home, the car was hit by another car." Her tears began to fall freely once again.

Kassie looked Sara right in the eye. "Was Jason hurt?"

"Yes, sweetie, he was."

"But he's okay, right?" Tears began to form in her eyes as well.

Sara pulled her head into her chest. "He was hurt really bad."

Kassie began to sob, her voice cracking as well. "He's okay isn't he?"

Giving bad news to strangers was hard enough, but to tell your daughter that her older brother isn't going to come home, that was pure hell. Sara didn't want to come right out and tell her he was dead. The only way she knew how was to relate the situation to another experience.

"Remember when one of your fish, Mortimer, died?"

As her head rested next to Sara's chest, Kassie nodded.

"And Dad and I told you it went to heaven?"

Again she nodded.

"Well…" Thinking it was hard enough, saying it was worse. Her tears increased with intensity as she forced the words out. "Jason went to heaven this morning."

Kassie started crying even harder right along with Sara. "No, why? He said he would always be here for me."

"I know sweetie…"

Sara didn't get to finish as Kassie pulled away from her and ran out of the bedroom. She stood and began to follow. Kassie ran upstairs to Jason's room. She threw herself on his bed and continued to cry.

Grissom was now sitting up on the couch and watched Kassie rush by crying. He knew Sara had told her that Jason was gone. Sara walked by immediately after. If he could, he would have followed, but the massive amount of alcohol was keeping him grounded to the couch. The pain was still there no matter how much he consumed.

She didn't bother knocking and went straight in to try and comfort Kassie. Sara curled up on the bed with her and after several more minutes of crying they were both able to calm slightly and just lay together surrounded by the memories of Jason.

Another cry filled the house. With one more swallow, Grissom looked to the top of the stairs. He waited for Sara to appear, but after a minute passed, he knew she wasn't coming. It took every ounce of strength to get on his feet. Then to walk to Sydney was going to be another feat.

He stood over her crib and tried to convince her to go back to sleep. He knew he was toodrunk and didn't dare try to remove her. "Shhh. My head's going to hurt enough as it is. Shhh. Please go back to sleep."

Soon, Sara appeared and pushed him aside. "Move."

Her tone was harsh as she removed Sydney and changed her diaper. Grissom stood on unsupportive legs and watched. Sara picked up a now quiet Sydney and just walked passed her husband as if he wasn't standing there.

The day played on like a broken record. For an hour or so the house would be dead silent. Kassie would wake only to continue her rants and sobbing. After an hour she exhausted herself and would fall asleep. Sara did her best to comfort her as they shared many hugs and tears. Sydney was doing as she normally did. Unfortunately the dark mood that had settled in the house had her fussing more than normal. It took Grissom another half bottle to pass out. As he drank the pain in his chest never went away, and he couldn't just fall asleep. So, he decided to drink enough to just pass out.

By the beginning of the evening, everyone but Sara was asleep. She had been sitting in the recliner across from Grissom when she wasn't with Sydney or Kassie. Her body was exhausted and wanted sleep, but her mind refused to let her. So she sought refuge in watching her husband sleep in his cloud of scotch.

A soft knock came at the front door. She didn't want to answer it; she wanted to keep the world away from her family. Do whatever she needed to, to protect them. After several more knocks, Sara sighed and forced her body to walk to the door. Without looking to see who it was, she pulled it heavy door open.

Warrick and Catherine looked at her as if they knew the state they would find her in. She stepped back and let them enter.

Catherine pulled her into an immediate embrace and the moment she did, Sara broke down again. It was all Catherine could do to comfort her. After a few minutes, Sara pulled back and they walked into the living room. She sat in one chair as Catherine sat in the other. Warrick perched himself on the arm of Catherine's and put his arm around her.

They all looked at Grissom. He was on his back, one arm and leg hanging off the side. His head turned sideways, mouth agape as he breathed in ragged breaths. The one empty and one half full bottles of scotch stood on the table. Catherine didn't need to ask; she knew her friend well and sighed as she knew it was only the beginning.

* * *

I'm sure that you all would like to kill me for what I have just done, but like I said 'twasn't me. One evening I was chillin' and thespoon called me and she's just like, 'you need to kill Jason.' The wheels began turning and here we are. Sorry if I disappointed some of you, but hey it's fiction. And I kinda did want to kill someone. Remember to send her any hate mail you wish, or if you want direct it to her through your review, dealers choice. Don't worry, there is more to come, and I promise to end the story happy.

TDCSI


	31. Chapter 31

The reviews for the previous chapters have been awesome, and thespoon thanks everyone for not hating on her. On another note, the puppies are here. Sorry, just excited and had to get that out there. So here's another chapter to put several of you at ease on how they are taking Jason's death.

Big thanks to Just Thinking for her great beta work on this entire story. And to thegreatbluespoon, in less than a week you'll be here in Texas and we can only hope the world won't end upon your arrival.

* * *

Teens & Tribulations

Chapter 31

The first things that moved were his eyelids. They ever so slowly tried to open as his eyes forced themselves to focus on his surroundings. Blinking rapidly was the first indication that everything was a blur, he was sure the rest of his body could follow. His arms felt like they were weighed down by anchors and his legs as if they were cast in concrete. The creaking in his neck was heard only by him as it turned his scotch drowned head. It was then he saw her.

Sara was sitting in the recliner, her legs drawn up to her chest, her arms wrapped around her knees holding them in place, but it was her eyes that did the most damage to him. They were dark, cold lasers that pierced his soul.

"How dare you?"

He didn't need to hear her speak to know she was upset with him. Grissom let out a pained moan and attempted to sit up. After several tries, he managed a sitting position, instantly dropping his pounding head into his hands. "What time is it?" Cotton mouth was hell as he tried to speak. It felt as if he was regurgitating sandpaper.

Sara continued to stare at him, but did answer. "It's six. You've been passed out for the past eight hours." She tilted her head to see if he was even receiving the information she was giving him. "Why are you asking? Are you going to run away to the lab?"

Grissom lifted his heavy head to look at her. "No."

"Surprise, surprise."

"What do you want from me? Our son was just killed. What did you expect me to do, just keep walking around and pretend that everything was alright? Well it's not alright…" He sat up straight and placed his palms to his chest, "…this is not alright."

Sara looked away as fresh tears began to form. Grissom sighed and knew that there wasn't enough alcohol in the world to kill the pain in his chest. With what little energy he had, Grissom moved to the floor and by way of his hands and knees, crawled the short distance to Sara.

"Sara…" Grissom raised his hands to her face, turning it so he could look into her eyes. "I'm sorry. We'll get through this."

That was all it took before sobs rocked her body. He pulled her to join him on the floor. She allowed his arms to take her in and give her the strong reassurance she was craving.

He held her for what seemed like an hour, but it was his pounding head that forced words from his mouth. "Do we have any aspirin?"

Sara nodded against him and stood . He watched as she disappeared down the hall, emerged to walk into the kitchen, and return with three pills and a glass of water. "Here."

"Three?"

"Trust me."

Grissom popped the pills in his mouth and swallowed them drinking the entire glass of water.

She took the empty glass. "I'm going to start dinner."

He just gave her a half smile and watched her leave. Trying not to think of how the past twenty four hours had turned his world upside down. With a grunt Grissom pulled himself to his feet. There were three paths before him: he could take the kitchen, the stairs, or the hallway. He chose door number two.

The fifteen stairs were agony as he gripped the railing to pull himself up. Once to the top, he started down the short hall. Kassie's room was first. He knocked and slowly opened the door, but it was empty. Grissom dropped his head and continued to the next door. He stopped before entering as the posted sign brought a smile to his face.

'_QUIET: Genius at Work' _

Grissom opened the door and walked in. Even as the evening sun shown, the room was dark. Jason had hung a dark sheet over the window the first day he and Kassie had moved in. It was something Grissom thought would pass once he had settled in, but the sheet never came down. Jason was a creature of habit as much as Grissom was. He had spent most of his life in the dark, and even though was free from the darkness, chose to reside in it.

As he looked around the cold room, Grissom saw so much of himself in the room. One wall held the shelves he and Jason had hung to display his small specimen collection. Next to the shelves was a desk. He moved to sit in the chair. Several papers laid about, the computer screen saver rotated between pictures of baseball and Kassie and himself. Grissom swallowed and large lump as he remembered the day they moved the kids things into their home. He moved the mouse on the desk. The screen saver disappeared and several items were still up on the desktop. The last things Jason was working on before he was taken.

Grissom clicked the word document that was minimized.

_Lindsey,_

_I hope you know that I care about you a great deal, but I have something on my conscious that I need to rid myself of. While on vacation I was, I guess you could say unfaithful to you. It was never my intention to do such a thing, and I don't know what got into me. I'm sure you will be mad at me, who could blame you. I'm mad at myself. Maybe after things cool down and we're back in school, you could find it in your heart to forgive me. You're the first girl I've really had the privilege of getting to know, and I am hoping you would do me honor of being my escort to the homecoming dance in October. _

_You're a marvelous person, and my heart is on a platter for you to take or break._

_Jason_

The wetness flowing down his face was minor compared to the pride he was feeling. His son was taking responsibility for his actions as a teenager, and he could only imagine what he would have been like as a man. Always being honest with his wife and children.

He closed the document and clicked on the next icon; a compiled list of colleges that had the best baseball programs and were academically sound. A smile slowly formed across Grissom's face as he read. Jason sometimes was like the average teen, but deep down was so mature for his age.

Grissom shut down the computer and left the room with a soft click of the door. He turned and came face to face with a broken hearted six year old squeezing a killer whale. They only stared for a minute before Grissom extended his arms. Kassie walked to him as he bent down to pick her up. His back, arms, and legs screamed in protest, but he didn't care as he lifted her up. She held onto the whale as her arms wrapped around him. Grissom softly squeezed her and carried her to the stairs. "Come on, Mom's making dinner."

They made their way down stairs and into the dining room. Grissom set Kassie down in her usual spot. He looked at the plates on the table. Sara had set the table for four. He picked one plate up and returned to the kitchen.

Sara saw him return a plate to the shelf and immediately knew she had set a place for Jason. She stopped what she was doing as her body began to sob again. Grissom was behind her instantly and wrapped his arms around her for support. He silently calmed her and she assured him she was fine once again. After fixing a drink for Kassie, Grissom retrieved Sydney and brought her to the table as well.

It was quiet as they ate. The occasional ping of the silverware on the plates was all the conversation that was carried out. Once they finished dinner, Sara took a shower with Sydney, as Kassie helped Grissom clean up. The silence that settled in the house was too much, and Grissom went to turn on the stereo.

He picked up the remote and pushed the power button. The sound that flowed from the speakers was nothing he or Sara would listen to. Process of elimination, Jason was the last one listening to the stereo. Grissom let the CD play on as he and Kassie settled into the couch.

Grissom turned to Kassie. "Do you want to color with me?"

She nodded and scooted to the floor, as he pulled a few of her coloring books and the box of crayons to the floor. The music played on as they added color to the black and white pages.

Sara joined them minus Sydney. "Kassie, it's time for your bath."

Kassie stood and hugged Grissom who said, "Thanks for coloring with me."

"You're welcome Daddy."

She followed Sara upstairs leaving Grissom sitting alone. After sitting on the floor for a few additional minutes, Grissom made his way into the kitchen. A weak smile grew on his face once he found what he was looking for. The half empty bottle of scotch greeted him, and just when he thought his demons would take over, Grissom twisted off the cap and poured the remainder of the amber liquid down the drain. He tossed the bottle and went to take a shower himself.

It was a good thing Sara and Grissom had a king sized bed. Sara lay on her side, Grissom on his, in the middle was Kassie and Sydney. It was their first night at home without Jason, and no one wanted to be alone. Kassie snuggled up close to Grissom, Sara was on her side looking towards Grissom as Sydney lay next to her.

By midnight the girls were sleeping, Sara only had her eyes closed, she was far from sleep. Grissom continued to stare at the ceiling. Occasionally he turned his head to glance at her. She would crack a smile knowing he was looking at her, before opening her eyes to look back. Sara could tell there was a question burning in his mind.

She didn't have a question, only a request, that her family stay safe and sound.

He turned his head back to the ceiling. "I'm thinking about calling Al."

Sara sighed, "Gil, why?"

Grissom just continued to stare up. He really didn't know why, or even why he had said it. It was just the investigator deep down that wanted to know why his son died on the operating table.

He never answered Sara as they continued to lay silently in their bed with the girls. It only took another two hours before Grissom gently pried himself free of Kassie and stood up from the bed. Sara watched as he quickly dressed in sweat pants and a t-shirt.

"Where are you going?" Sara whispered making every attempt to not wake the sleeping girls.

Grissom turned to face her. "A drive."

"You're going to the lab aren't you?" She questioned right back and it stopped him dead in his tracks. "Thought so."

He never looked at her, but only paused just long enough to indicate to her that she was right. Sara closed her eyes, not to go to sleep, but just so she didn't have to watch him leave.

Grissom made his way silently to the garage, climbed into his truck and took off. At first he didn't know where he was going, he just let the truck take him away. Vegas was alive and well at two in the morning. He just continued to drive, until he made it to an intersection he knew would haunt him for the rest of his life.

He pulled the truck to the curb and killed the motor. Grissom sat with the window rolled down and took in his surroundings. The smell of gasoline still lingered in the air even a day later. Black marks on the pavement fresher than ever, glass was still making the ground sparkle. Without getting out Grissom continued to look around; he could tell by the directionality of the skid marks, one vehicle ran the stop sign, the other had the right away. Which he didn't know, but now he needed to find out who was in the wrong, and brought his son's life to a tragic end.

With a turn of the key, the truck came to life again and Grissom began driving. He took several off turns but unconsciously ended up and the rear of the Las Vegas Crime Lab building. Once again he shut off the truck, only this time he climbed out, he needed to know.

Dr. Robbins was performing a routine autopsy on a trick roll that had happened earlier that night when the rear double door opened that was normally used by David. He looked up and Grissom walked through.

"Gil."

Grissom didn't even acknowledge Robbins as he began to scan over the ID's on the stainless steel drawers. Robbins knew exactly who he was looking for, and moved as quickly as he could to the label Grissom was looking for. Grissom saw this and moved to his side.

"Gil, this is not a place to say goodbye." Robbins held his ground and tried to fend off his friend.

Grissom retaliated, "I just need to know."

He didn't need to say any more, Robbins knew what he was wanting. With a sigh he reluctantly told him. "Gil, the impact was severe. Jason suffered massive internal bleeding." Robbins paused to evaluate Grissom, he wanted to know if what he was saying wasn't being heard by deaf ears.

"Continue."

"His spleen and liver were practically crushed beyond recognition, Gil, are you sure you want to hear this?"

Grissom looked up at his bearded friend, and let his eyes do the talking.

Robbins cleared his throat and continued. "Gil, there's not a surgeon in the world that could have saved him." He finished with his voice low, hoping that it would give him some closure.

A heavy sigh was released from Grissom as he continued to stare at the front of the drawer that contained his son. "I want to see him."

"Gil…"

"Please Al just… let me see my son."

Several seconds ticked by as if they were minutes. Finally Robbins sighed and opened the door. His eyes looked back to Grissom, just to double check it's what he wanted. He pulled out the table and pulled back the white sheet only to the shoulders.

Grissom fought the tears that were tugging at him but it was no use. At the sight of his teenage son laying cold and pale against the steel, his tears fell. He had seen more people lying on this cold steel than he cared to reveal, but at the sight of someone he knew, someone close to him, his son, Grissom finally broke down and let his hurt and emotions flow freely.

It started with the steady stream of tears, then progressed to deep breaths that were about to release a monster. Robbins watched as Grissom released a deep guttural yell and without warning, in a flash turned bringing his right fist up to make contact with the smooth steel.

Doc jumped back slightly, his own face wincing from the possible pain. Grissom pulled his hand to him and watched as the sheet was pulled back up over his son, and he was placed back into the cooler. Robbins limped over to his friend and helped him over to the closest chair.

Grissom sat down, in pain and in tears as Robbins pulled his hand away from his body so he could inspect the self inflicted damage. "Let me see." He didn't need to take x-rays; Grissom's hand was rapidly swelling. Robbins looked up into the red rimmed, blue eyes, "It's broken."

Still emotionless about his hand, Grissom only gave a slight nod and watched as Robbins went to retrieve the necessary items to wrap the injured hand.

Once he had Grissom's hand wrapped up, Robbins instructed him to follow. They walked into the small office; Robbins sat behind his desk and reached for one of the side drawers, as Grissom sat on the couch. "Here, take these."

Grissom leaned forward and extended his hand to accept Robbins' offerings. Two small white tablets fell into his hand. Without blinking, Grissom popped them into his mouth and swallowed them dry. Without letting the Ibuprofen take effect, Grissom stood headed for the rear doors. He never looked back as he headed back home to what remained of his family.

* * *

I don't know how much longer this will go, but I'm aiming for a few more chapters. Unless, I succumb to more peer pressure from thespoon.

And for those of you reading out other story, 'What Goes Around', we've changed out penname. Review the story if you want to know what it means, or you can just look it up on your own. Whatever floats your boat.

TDCSI

P.S. I just had to add the broken hand part for my friend Ronda. One of the horses bit her, so thinking she was faster than lightning, tried to punch him. Well low and behold, she missed the horse, but not the brick wall. Yeah, FYI, punching a brick wall will break your hand, and horses are faster than you might think.


	32. Chapter 32

I can't thank those that have reviewed enough, they have all been awesome. Big thanks to Just Thinking for her excellent beta work. I want to mention that I might be tardy at updating the next chapter. Yes, she's here, thegreatbluespoon, and as I write this, she's four feet from me. But I'll still make an attempt to write another chapter.

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Teens & Tribulations

Chapter 32

Dark clouds hung over, the breeze had a cool bite to it, the sky looked as though it could open up at any minute and pour down rain. A crowd of black was gathered in the garden of stone as they planted yet another. The mahogany casket was slowly lowered into the earth as rain of a different kind fell.

Grissom stood next to the lowering casket as Kassie pressed herself into his left leg, as his right arm rested across the back of his wife as she cradled their youngest to her chest. Sara let her tears flow freely down her face as her son was laid to rest. Kassie clutched Grissom's leg and was using it to quiet her sobs.

Behind them, the entire night shift and several detectives and officers stood lending their silent support. Lindsey was holding on to her mother as she silently cried. Warrick had his arm around Catherine giving her comfort as she made an attempt not to cry, but failed miserably. Nick, Greg, Brass, Al, David, and even Hodges, stood like stone. Other than the air they inhaled expanding their chests, they never moved as a stray tear or two would succumb to gravity and fall.

Slowly they dissipated. Sara stayed with Grissom as he was the last one standing over their son's grave. She picked up his damaged right hand, brought it to her lips, and placed a kiss over the wrapped knuckles. "Come on." It was a whisper, but she knew he heard her when he turned his head to face her. "Let's go home."

Sara gave a short tug and Grissom turned. Kassie raised her arms to him, and without hesitation Grissom bent down and scooped her up using his good arm. He took hold of Sara's hand and they walked to the truck surrounded by their silence.

Once home and through the front door, Grissom roughly pulled his tie from his neck as he moved to sit down on the couch. Sara carried Sydney and instructed Kassie to go upstairs and change her clothes. After she changed and fed Sydney, Sara placed her in her crib for her afternoon nap. She was exhausted as she changed her clothes as well. The morning had exhausted her, Jason's service started at nine, and the number of people there had surprised her. The back half of the church was solid with students from the high school. After only one year of attending, it was evident that he made an impression amongst his peers. The morning was extremely emotional. It had drained all of her energy and all she wanted to do was just lay down. The whole morning Grissom was silent. He never said a word and no one expected him to.

She just stripped out of her pant suit and into a comfy pair of pajamas and crawled into bed. The past few days were a nightmare, she only slept an average of a few hours a night. Kassie had spent every night sharing the bed with her and Grissom. Sara knew exactly how she felt. Her first night away from her mother, she wished she had someone to comfort her when she needed it. Memories began to flood her mind, and some not so nice. She curled into a ball on the top of the covers and tried to fend them off. Only the slowly opening of the door swept them away.

"Momma." Kassie pushed the door open, crawled into bed, and into Sara's waiting arms. "I'm sleepy."

"I am too sweetie. Just close your eyes and rest." She felt Kassie's body relax and soon was sound asleep in her arms.

As the weeks rolled by, Grissom slumped back into his usual routine at the lab. He was home for only a few hours during the day, and then it was to sleep. Sara stopped going back to the lab. After losing Jason, she just wanted to make sure the girls were safe. Every evening she set the table for three, but ninety percent of the time, only two and a baby were present. Kassie was far less talkative and when Sara brought up her going back to school, she threw a fit and retreated to her room. The war at home was more than what Sara wanted to deal with, but since Grissom was never at home, she was the only one to fight the battle.

Grissom had changed, and everyone just stayed clear of him. Greg never attempted to crack a joke, Nick and Warrick stayed serious, and Catherine wanted to say something to him, but decided it would be wise to give him more time. With Ecklie breathing down his neck to hire a replacement, the weight of loosing Jason still on his shoulders, Grissom looked as if at any given moment he would explode. And there wasn't a person in the lab that didn't try to stay clear of him in fear of being the one who set him off. The fourth of July had already come and gone, but soon the inevitable would come.

"Grissom." Catherine knocked as she called out his name. "A Cleve Jensen is waiting out front."

Without looking up, Grissom shot back, "Not now."

"Gil…" Catherine stepped further into his office. The door remained open, but she didn't care. She could tell by the tone of his voice that the shit was about to hit the fan. "Sara told me herself that she turned in her resignation letter that she wasn't coming back to work."

"I know." His voice warned Catherine.

"We're shorthanded. I haven't had a day off in over a week, Warrick's been pulling multiple doubles, Nick's complaining…"

Grissom looked up sharply. "Is all you people do is bitch?"

Catherine nearly took a step back. "Wha…what?"

"It seems to me that you're here to complain about everyone. Right now I don't have the time to conduct an interview, if you do, be my guest."

"Well if we weren't shorthanded around here, then I could." She leaned forward over his desk. "We all need a break, even you. When's the last time you were home for longer than a few hours?"

His head rose up slowly, his blue eyes staring her down over his glasses. "This isn't about me."

Another voice shot out into the office without warning. "It's about the lab." Grissom looked over Catherine as she turned to meet the glare from Ecklie. "Do the interview, I don't care who does it, just get it done." He turned and left, leaving Cleve standing by himself in the hall.

Catherine moved to the door. "Would you give us a minute?" Cleve nodded and she shut the door. She was going to lay it all on the table and she didn't care what he wanted to hear. "Look…it's been three weeks. I'm tired, you're tired, the guys are tired, I'm sure Sara would like to slap you right now…"

Grissom continued to stare at her, silently warning her not to push him too far.

"Can't we just hire someone, and move on with our lives?"

The minute she said 'move on with our lives' Grissom's featured softened. As much as he hated to admit it, Catherine was right. He stood suddenly. "I'll be back."

"Uhhh…" Catherine was confused as she watched him open the door.

"Cleve right?" Grissom asked the young man waiting in the hall.

"Yes sir."

"Can you hold on like…half an hour?"

He gave a confused answer. "Yeah."

Grissom gave a half smile and headed out. Cleve looked at Catherine wondering where his potential boss was heading. She shrugged her shoulders. "Do you donate blood?"

The drive was short. Grissom headed to that one familiar place. He shined his flashlight in the darkness to highlight the marker that indicated where his son was laid to rest. The headstone stood proud surrounded by flowers; a black shiny marble with a baseball and bat engraved at the bottom. He kneeled next to Jason.

"I lost my temper again. I wish you were here to help set me straight." His eyes filled with tears as he spoke. "I didn't know how to handle the sudden change in my life when you and Kassie came along, but you kept telling me that I was doing just fine. And now I've lost you, and I'm lost." He sniffed back more tears. "I've fallen back into my old habits, always at work and never at home." The tears began to flow as he realized he was hanging on, hoping that Jason would come home.

With a few wipes to his face, his face was dry. He stood, his knees creaking as he rose. "Goodbye Jason, I love you."

Grissom returned to his truck and pointed it towards the lab. He flew low under the radar when he entered. From his office, he had a straight on view of the front desk, so when he rounded the corner, the first thing he saw was Catherine sitting in one of the chairs interviewing Cleve. She never noticed him until he entered and went to sit behind his desk. Cleve watched him even after he sat down, Grissom's eyes fell upon him, and he looked back to Catherine. He never asked a question, only listened intently as she spoke with Cleve for nearly an hour. Once he left, Catherine remained poised in her seat wanting to say something but couldn't bring herself to. She stood and left him with his paperwork.

By the time he arrived home, Sara and the girls were gone. After a quick meal and a shower, Grissom was off to bed.

For a mid morning the park was near empty. Lindsey was entertaining Kassie on the play ground, it was the first time since Jason's death that Sara had seen her smile so much. She wouldn't play with the friends she made in school, but only Lindsey as she was one of the few people her brother trusted.

Sara and Catherine sat on a nearby bench watching the two play, as Sydney slept in her stroller. She didn't know why she had ask to talk to Catherine, other than she needed to talk to somebody, and Grissom wasn't talking to her. "Thanks for meeting me Cath."

Catherine turned her head trying to get a read on Sara; she could immediately tell there was something bothering her. "It's no problem Sara. Lindsey's been sulking around the house as well. I had no idea how much this would affect her." She paused hoping Sara would get the courage to speak about what was clearly bothering her, and she did.

"Well…" Sara turned back to watch Lindsey and Kassie as she continued. "I don't know what to do anymore, Gil's never home and he won't talk since Jason died, and Kassie…" She released a heavy sigh. "…she's shutting herself out from the world, except for Lindsey. I don't expect her to just forget about Jason, nor do I want to her to, but she's going to have to move on sometime." Sara turned sharply to look at Catherine. "Did you know that since we buried Jason, Gil has been visiting his grave every day? Sometimes twice a day, I know this has been hard on him, but I don't know how to get him to talk about it."

"Sara, you know how he is about his feelings."

"I know but I just wish he would talk to me." A stray tear threatened to fall as she looked down at her sleeping baby.

Catherine felt her need to talk about her own feelings with Jason's death. "Sara, how are you taking things?"

She continued to look into the stroller. "Oh, I've been too busy to think about that, with the girls and trying to deal with Gil's absence. I just don't get it Cath; children are not supposed to die before their parents. And the fact that he was killed by a drunk driver just adds salt to the wound." She paused and looked into Catherine's eyes. "Did you read the file?"

Catherine nodded slowly.

"What exactly happened? What does the evidence say?" Sara asked boldly.

Catherine wasn't sure if Sara was ready to hear the details of that fateful night, so she paused long enough for Sara to ask again.

"Please, tell me."

With another sigh, Catherine started, "The Mustang was traveling west on Industrial, and the other car was heading south. There was no indication of either vehicle attempting to stop, the skid marks started as the cars impacted. Jason was sitting behind the passenger, and according to the first responders, no one was wearing a seat belt. The cars slid at an angle about seventy five feet down the street." She saw the look on Sara's face turn to shock.

"Seventy five feet?! How fast were they going?"

"It was estimated that the Mustang was going sixty, and the other car was going around fifty."

"So they were both speeding." Sara interrupted.

Catherine nodded. "As the cars slid down the road, the Mustang was pushed into a curb and flipped up and that's when it began to roll. The driver was ejected, which probably saved his live, the other boy and Jason were tossed about within the car before it came to rest on the roof." She paused and watched Sara's reaction, which she hid well.

With little emotion she asked, "What happened to the drunk driver that hit them?"

"A few cuts and bruises, he pleaded guilty to two counts of vehicular manslaughter. Since he was driving on a suspended license for a DUI, the judge didn't go easy on him. He was sentenced to forty years."

Sara felt a few tears escape and was quick to wipe them away. Neither spoke as they let what Catherine revealed settle between them. They both continued to watch Kassie play with Lindsey. Both girls were having fun enjoying themselves. Catherine could tell there was something else bothering Sara, but knew she wouldn't have to wait long for it to be revealed as her attention turned back to Sydney.

Then Sara just blurted it out. "I think I'm pregnant."

* * *

Ah shit, I did it again. Sorry 'bout that. Please keep up the awesome reviews.

TDCSI


	33. Chapter 33

Ok, so like I thought since thespoon was visiting that two great imaginative minds together in the same room would make HUGE progress, right? WRONG!!! I didn't get a damn thing done 'cause we jacked around the entire two weeks. And she called me an alchololic because a few nights I had a beer, ONE beer with dinner. But I did get lit a few nights while we were in Oklahoma. And because of me, thespoon got to see more of the world. She's pissed because she got attached to a Border Collie pup, then the next day we sold her. I don't think she'll ever forgive Orin for that.

Huge thanks to Just Thinking and her extra fast beta skills. And I'm sorry for the delay in updating, but I promise to make it up to you all with a fast update.

* * *

Teens & Tribulations

Chapter 33

Catherine could only look at Sara, her face full of pure shock. Her jaw hung slightly agape as she took in the very enlightening information Sara just shared.

Sara couldn't look over at Catherine's reaction; she knew without looking, that stunned was an understatement.

It took a few minutes before Catherine could respond. "Sara, I don't know what to say. Have you taken a pregnancy test?" Her only response was a slight shake. "And I'm guessing this is just a feeling." Once again only a head nod was her answer. "Look, Sara, why don't you go get a test, go home, Lindsey and I will take the girls. She can baby sit for you."

"That's not necessary Cath…"

Catherine turned to face Sara and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Sara, listen to me, go home, take a test, if you are pregnant wonderful, but you still need to talk to Gil, regardless."

"I know." Sara released a heavy sigh, "Trust me Cath, I know."

They continued to sit on the bench for nearly half an hour watching Lindsey run around with Kassie. Before Sara left, she made sure Catherine had all of the necessary items that might be needed for Sydney.

"I can't thank you enough Cath." Sara said as she placed the car seat into Catherine's car.

Catherine was fastening Kassie's seat belt. "Sara, don't worry about this, just go home and get things straightened out between you and Gil."

Sara cracked a smile as she finished fastening in Sydney. She placed a kiss on her daughters' foreheads before leaving them in the capable hands of Catherine and Lindsey and heading to the drug store.

She watched as they drove away from the park before entering her own car. Sara sat behind the wheel and looked around her car. It wasn't old, but it wasn't new either; the back seat proudly carried the stains of a six year old and an infant. If it did turn out that she was pregnant, she would definitely need a new car, and there was no way in hell she was going to be the mini-van driving, house wife. Sara gave her head a quick shake and headed out.

Away from the strip traffic was light, Sara drove to her regular pharmacy. Having kids around meant doctors visits and getting prescriptions from the local pharmacist more often than she would have liked.

"Well hello there Sara." A tall blonde woman dawning a white lab coat greeted her.

She looked up to the friendly face of the pharmacist. "Hello Megan."

After a brief moment of looking behind Sara, Megan concluded she was alone on this visit. "No kids today I see."

"No, no kids. They're spending the day at a friends."

The pharmacist smiled, "And to what do I owe this visit?"

Sara looked down at her feet before responding. "I need a pregnancy test." Upon hearing a gasp, she looked up.

Megan was smiling brightly. "Another baby Grissom. This one came around much faster than the last." Sara gave a half smile and watched Megan's face fall. "Sara, how are you doing? And don't think you can lie, I've known you for quite some time now, and you look troubled. Is it Gil?"

"It's a bit of everything, and now with this…" Sara placed a hand palm down covering her stomach.

Megan reached behind her, and grabbed one of the small boxes and handed it over to Sara. "Here, it's on the house. I hope it will all work out."

Sara took the test, thanked Megan, and headed back to her car. The drive home was shorter than she remembered. She maneuvered her car into the driveway next to Grissom's Denali.

"Great. Not what I need right now." She huffed as she turned off the ignition.

With what little energy she had left after a very emotional morning, Sara climbed out of her car and quietly entered the house. She closed and locked the front door and tip-toed her way to the bedroom. Sara silently moved about, trying not to disturb her sleeping husband; she changed into something more comfortable before taking the small package into the bathroom.

He wasn't asleep, and heard her come in. She was obviously trying to avoid him, so he played dead, but he was aware of her movements. Grissom looked at the bedside clock when Sara went into the bathroom. There was no indication of any activity, it remained silent. When she finally did emerge, the clock had advanced fifteen minutes. He knew he should be the one to initiate what they both knew they needed to talk about, but instead, Grissom lay still, while Sara eased into bed beside him. She stayed away from him in her attempt not to wake him. Once Sara had settled on her side, her back facing him, Grissom slid over, put an arm around her, and pulled her back flush against his chest.

Sara released a sigh, she knew he wasn't asleep. He was always good at pretending, but it was the little things that gave him away. She let her body become enveloped by his. Little gestures like this had nearly disappeared since Jason's death. In fact, they rarely slept in the same bed at the same time at all.

Grissom wrapped his arm a little tighter around her and began covering her neck with soft kisses. Sara relished in the sensations and just let him do what he wanted, for now. He placed several more under her ear before breaking contact.

"I'm sorry." He whispered.

Sara tried to keep her emotions in check as she let him confess.

"Sara, I know this has been hard on all of us, and I thought I would have been stronger, but I wasn't. It tore me apart. Now it's just us and the girls, and I want to be the best father and husband I can."

She couldn't help it. "What about the lab?"

He pulled her tighter. "What about it? I know I've done it before, I can do it again. I'm going to stop working endless amounts of double and triple shifts. I don't know what I would do if something happened to you or the girls and I was away working when I should have been home. I want to be here for you, Sara, I love you." Grissom finished by placing a butterfly soft kiss to her cheek.

Sara didn't try to stop the few tears that had escaped. She rolled over to face him, to see if he was just as emotionally distressed about the whole thing as she was. When she saw his face, she knew he was sincere. He was definitely a broken man. She put her arms around him and pulled his face to hers, now it was her turn to kiss him, to show him how much she loved him.

Grissom wanted to deepen the kiss, he wanted to be able to make love to his wife, and just when he thought nothing was going to happen, Sara's hand moved down his side and stopped at his hip. Her movement caused a slight moan to escape as they began to deepen their kiss. Sex was like a drug to them, and they both needed a fix.

In no time, their clothes were discarded and Grissom was making love to Sara for the first time in nearly a month. He was slow and passionate, making sure she was enjoying it as much as he was. After their climaxes faded, Grissom held Sara close to him.

"Honey, since we keep forgoing the condom, do you think you might be able to go on the pill?" He asked sincerely remembering her fear while they were on vacation.

Sara released a slight scoff and it was out before she knew she said it. "It's a little late for that."

Suddenly her eyes grew larger as the words escaped. Grissom may be dense, but most of the time he's sharp as a tack, and that little innuendo didn't escape him.

He moved so he could look into her eyes. "And what's that supposed to mean?"

"It means it's too late, I'm already pregnant." She stopped there and waited for his response. Last time they had tried for nearly a year before finally getting pregnant, and Grissom was ecstatic, but this time, she had that sick feeling like it wasn't going to go over so well.

"You're pregnant? And you've know this for how long?" His voice became stern.

"Since I came home, I was in the bathroom waiting for the results. I know this is bad timing…"

"Bad timing; it's horrible timing." Grissom pulled himself away from her and sat up. He placed his head in his hands as he began to do the worst thing he could do, think. "I…I can't believe this. We just lost our son and now you're telling me that we have another child coming."

Sara kept the sheet against her torso as she sat up and tried to diffuse the situation. "Look, we knew it might happen, and it did. I know this has got to be about the worst timing in the world, but I can't just put this on hold."

Grissom slung his legs over the side of the bed, and quickly pulled on his shorts. He stood and put as much distance between Sara and himself as he could.

"Where are you going?"

"I need to think…"

She was quick to interrupt him. "No! You need to stay, and we need to talk about this." Her eyes stared him down as he looked back at her in shock

"I didn't say I was leaving." He retaliated.

"But whenever you say you need to 'think', you haul ass out of here." Sara put her foot down. "Hear me now Gil, stay and talk with me, work this out, or…"

Grissom pursed his lips and narrowed his eyes at her. "Or…?"

She had to think. Never was she the type to think out a threat before saying it. "Or…you walk out that door, and when you return I'll be gone."

His face filled with pure fear and shock.

"Gil…" Sara's voice lowered as she released the sheet and moved to the edge of the bed. Grissom sucked in a breath as she moved to stand before him. "Talk with me. We both need to talk." She reached out and took his hand. With a gentle tug, he followed her back to the bed.

He sat back against the headboard as Sara pulled the sheet over them as she curled herself into his side. Grissom put his arm around her and held her close. He sat holding her in silence, losing his temper was no longer an option, and Grissom knew he needed to get a hold of it. With her relaxing in his arms, it was easy to let it go. "I'm just so confused."

Sara turned her head up slightly, still not able to see his face. "Confused about what."

"Everything." He increased the hold on her and stared off into space. "Why my life has to be so damn complicated, I mean look at me, I'm just over fifty and starting a family." Grissom let his head fall back with a soft thud against the headboard. "Then while I'm just getting used to it all, Jason was killed. It felt as if my soul had been ripped from me. I was the walking dead, but you and the girls were the ones who suffered, and I'm sorry for that."

Sara pushed herself closer to him, using her arms to squeeze some energy into his broken body. "And now how do you feel?"

He dipped his head and placed a kiss into her hair. "About my life, or about the recent developments in my life?"

"The latter."

Grissom released a sigh. "I'm happy about the baby, I really am."

Sara moved so she could look at his expression. "That doesn't sound very convincing."

"I'm still not over the shock. I guess I never expected you to get pregnant so soon."

"Me neither." She slipped back down.

They sat together enjoying each other's company. Sara was proud of what Grissom had revealed, other than a few minutes of raised voices; he shared his feelings with her rather easily.

"I think I'm going to ask to supervise the day shift."

Now he had her attention. Sara sat up and looked at him. "Where did this come from?"

All he could give her was a blank look. "I guess I just miss seeing you and the girls. When I get home, Kassie will be at school, and Sydney is usually asleep, and I'm tired myself. I just want to be able to spend time with them, with you."

She knew he was serious about making changes, so she snuggled back against him. "Whatever you choose to do, I'll be right behind your decision."

"Really? No arguments?"

"Nope, but I do have one request."

Grissom bit his bottom lip briefly as he thought about what she could possibly want. "And that would be…"

"I'll be needing a new car." Sara sat up suddenly letting the sheet slip once again. "And there's no way in hell, I'm going to be driving a mini-van."

"I wouldn't think of it."

Sara smirked at him and pulled him down on top of her. She always loved make-up sex.

Later that afternoon Sara had a list of errands to run. Her first stop was the clinic to have a blood test taken to confirm what the home pregnancy test revealed. She then went past the school and enrolled Kassie into the first grade. The school counselor had a few choice words with her, concerning Kassie's mental stability. Then she made a pit stop at the car dealership and did some brief window shopping before finishing up at the grocery store.

In the mean time, Grissom wanted to make good on what he had told Sara. After a quick shower, he headed off to Catherine's to collect his girls. As he walked up the sidewalk, the sounds coming from the backyard indicated that knocking would be useless. He walked with a fair amount of stealth to the pool.

All four were in the pool. Kassie and Lindsey were constantly getting out and jumping back in off the side. Catherine was holding Sydney in the shallow end and watching the other two.

"Looks like fun."

The four unsuspecting heads turned towards him. "Daddy!" Kassie exclaimed and was out of the pool in no time. Grissom picked her up, not caring if she was soaking wet.

"Having fun?"

"Yeah, we watched movies first while Aunt Cath slept, 'cause she said we had to wait until she got up to swim. Did you see me jump?"

He smiled. "Yes, I did."

"Watch me." She struggled against him until he put her down. She went back to the side. "Daddy watch."

"I'm watching."

Kassie leapt into the air bringing her legs up and wrapping her arms around them as she cannon balled into the water. She came to the surface and wiped the water from her face as she treaded water. "Did you see?"

"Yes. You're becoming quite the little swimmer."

She smiled back proudly and swam to the edge. Catherine was already out of the pool and handed a wet, naked Sydney to him. "Here, you're already wet."

"Thanks."

She smiled at him as he interacted with his daughter. The urge to ask about Sara and himself was great, but Catherine managed to hold her tongue. She turned back to the splashing in the pool, "Come on girls, time to get out."

The barrage of disappointing 'awes' followed, but they swam their way to the edge and climbed out. Catherine handed out the towels before they went dripping into the house. She and Grissom followed as Kassie and Lindsey headed to change their clothes.

"Thanks for watching the girls Cath." Grissom began to dress Sydney.

"Lindsey is the one who did all the babysitting."

He looked up at her as she dried her hair. Grissom had known Catherine for years, and instantly knew that she was holding back. He assumed that she had spoken with Sara before he did.

Kassie came running back into the room just as Grissom had finished dressing Sydney. Lindsey followed.

"Here Lindsey, this is for you." Grissom extended his hand that contained a folded bill.

"Thanks." She took it, and without unfolding it, knew it was a fairly large bill.

Grissom strapped Sydney into her car seat and helped Kassie get buckled in before heading home. Sydney had been so active during the day, the minute he started moving, she was immediately asleep. Kassie on the other hand, was wound tighter than an eight day clock.

"This morning, I helped Mom make breakfast. We had pancakes. Then we went to the park with Lindsey. I went down the fireman's pole all by myself." Grissom was going to praise her, but she was talking so fast he never had a chance. So, he just watched her in the mirror as she gestured with her hands as she spoke. "I went up the slide backwards, it was tricky, but Lindsey showed me how to spit on the bottom and wet my shoes for traction. After that it was easy. Oh, and we bailed off of the swings, I only got off once before Mom yelled at me. Then I climbed to the top of the wooden playground. I got a splinter and didn't even cry; Lindsey pulled it out. Then we left with Aunt Cath and Linds. Catherine went to sleep, so Lindsey let me pick out a movie for us to watch. Wanna guess what I picked out?" Grissom just looked at her and never attempted to answer. "_A __Bug's_ _Life_. I like that movie, 'cause it has bugs in it and since you play with bugs at work. Once that one was over we watched _Snow Dogs_, those dogs are so smart. Can I get a dog?"

Grissom looked at her through the mirror. He had to give her credit for ever so subtlety squeezing it in. "We'll see."

Kassie just sat back and smiled knowing that she was slowly progressing in the pet department. As Grissom pulled into the driveway, he noticed Sara had beaten him home, how she did it, he'll never know. He guessed it was a woman thing. Kassie had herself free from the seatbelt and was out of the car before Grissom. She sprinted to the house as he proceeded to retrieve a sleeping Sydney.

He cradled her as he walked into the house and heard Kassie telling the tale of her afternoon to Sara. He headed straight to the nursery and put the baby to bed before returning to the living room. Sara was sitting on the couch giving Kassie her full attention. Grissom sat down next to her and instantly put his arm around her. He leaned forward and whispered into her ear. "So?"

Sara leaned back into him and whispered, "She hasn't called yet."

Kassie finished her story of the day's events. Sara knew she wasn't thrilled about returning to school, and given her mood today, knew that news of it would turn her sour.

"In two weeks you'll start school again."

And it happened. "But I said I don't want to go."

"I know, but listen, your counselor and I had a chat. She said if you wanted, one of us could come have lunch with you for a few days. Just until you get settled back in."

This new information brought a smile to her face. "Really? Daddy, would you go to school with me?"

Grissom let his mouth fall open as he paused. "Um…"

Sara tuned. "Gil, it's only a few days."

"Alright."

Kassie jumped up off of the couch and moved to give him a hug which he returned gratefully. Once he released her, she scurried over to her fish tank to feed her fish. Just then the phone rang. Sara leaned forward to grab the cordless that was laying on the coffee table.

"Hello." She remained silent as the person on the other end of the line did all of the talking. "Thank you." She pushed the end button and sat back onto the couch.

"Who was that?" Grissom moved a hand up and down her arm trying to comfort her.

"It was Gloria, she got my blood test back."

"And…?"

Sara moved to lean into his body and Grissom wrapped his arms around her.

* * *

Go ahead let's all say it together, "Aw shit, I did it again." I don't know what it is with me and cliffhangers, but…well I can't really explain it. I just like 'em.

Please keep the reviews coming, everyone's comments have been fabulous.

TDCSI


	34. Chapter 34

Alrighty then, this is it. The very last chapter of T&T. Thank you to all of the readers and loyal reviewers who have stuck it out with me over the past seven months. Man how time flies.

I would like to thank my many supporters over this trek; Just Thinking, for her awesome beta skills; thegreatbluespoon, if it had not been for her, Jason would still be alive; Kakidoll, for her continued support and always being on my side when thespoon and I have a disagreement.

So without further a due, I give you the final chapter. Enjoy.

* * *

Teens & Tribulations

Chapter 34

Grissom held onto Sara, as she buried her face into his shoulder. She then began to smile against him and tilted her head up to kiss his neck. "I'm pregnant," she whispered.

"Really?" Grissom gasped as he looked down at his wife. She smiled her answer back, causing him to lean in and kiss her lips tenderly.

They just sat on the couch holding on to each other for the rest of the afternoon while Kassie sat on the floor in front of them and watched movies.

As Sara made dinner that evening something happened that she never expected. She was feeding Sydney some baby food as Grissom was doing the dishes.

"Let's go car shopping." He suddenly announced.

Sara froze. "Don't you have to work tonight?"

Grissom shrugged his shoulders. "Yeah, but with one phone call, that could change."

She was still stunned. "What about the girls?"

"Ah." He paused and looked around the room. "Be right back." He rushed out of the kitchen.

Sara gave her head a shake and looked back to Sydney. "Daddy's lost his mind." The baby gurgled. "Yes, I think we're throwing too much at him, and he's going cookoo."

Suddenly Grissom reappeared. "Ok, Lindsey is on her way over. I figure I can at least take off for a few hours into the night if it seems like we're going to be out late…"

Sara put her hand over his mouth silencing him. "Gil, stop it. You're rambling, I get it."

"Oh. Sorry." He smiled at her. "I guess I'm just getting those 'gonna be a dad again' jitters."

She continued to feed Sydney as Grissom finished up cleaning in the kitchen. When Lindsey arrived, she was greeted by a very enthusiastic Kassie. They went about amusing themselves as Sara put the baby down for the evening.

Grissom was waiting for her in the truck when she came out and climbed in. "So, do you have any idea about what you want for a grocery getter?"

Sara laughed. "Grocery getter!?" He smiled back. "Well, I do like your truck."

That drew a quick scoff from him. "Do you have any idea how much this big black machine put me back?"

"No, but I'm sure that what I'm looking for won't be that expensive."

Grissom just shot her a sarcastic look as he drove off. He was heading towards the strip, but taking the back way. Sara noticed this and knew she needed to intervene.

"Gil…" She put her hand on his arm. "This needs to stop."

He sighed and tuned away from where he was heading. "I just wish he was still here."

Sara took his hand in hers. "I do too."

They spent a few hours looking at several different Suburbans that were sitting on the car lot. So far, they had managed to avoid a salesman, but when a specific one caught Sara's eye, "Gil, look at this one." She drug him over to the SUV and opened the door. "Look at all of the room. I could haul all kinds of stuff, and not to mention groceries." She shot a look at him, Grissom just smiled back. "Don't say it. It's got a DVD player, oh, the girls would love that. And look, it gets better fuel mileage than your truck." She climbed inside while he continued his sarcastic stare at her.

Sara continued to sit behind the wheel while Grissom did all of the wheeling and dealing, but when the salesman nearly refused to bargain, she hopped out and grabbed Grissom's hand. "Come on Honey, I'm sure there's another dealership around here."

Grissom shrugged his shoulders and began to let himself be dragged away from the two-legged weasel. "Okay, okay. Let me go run this by my manager."

Sara turned around. "Sounds good, but I'm leaving in five minutes, because I'm going to buy a Suburban, whether it's here or somewhere else."

The salesman high tailed it back to the showroom while Grissom and Sara laughed at him. Sara climbed back into the Suburban and let herself become enveloped by the new car smell. "I've never had a new car before."

"Well, nothing's too good for you." Grissom replied as he leaned to kiss her on the cheek.

After another hour at the dealership, Grissom pulled his truck into the garage. Just as he climbed out, a Bermuda blue metallic Suburban pulled up next to him. Sara jumped out and leapt into his arms. "I love it, I love it, I love it."

He held her up and began walking to her new SUV. "Want to break it in properly?" She pushed back to look at his face, and he wiggled his eyebrows at her.

"I don't think so," she leaned back to him, "But you can take me to bed."

Grissom let a low growl slip. "As much as I would love to, I need to get to the lab." He set her down. "I've arranged for a meeting with the sheriff in the morning, so I'll be late."

"Just remember what I said."

He smiled and wrapped his arms around her. "Thank you."

Sara watched him leave before heading inside. It was already after eleven and she assumed that the girls would all be sleeping. Wrong. Kassie was the first to notice her. "Momma."

Sara gasped. "What happened to you?"

"Lindsey is showing me how to put on makeup."

"She is…" All she could do was let her mouth fall open as Kassie headed back into the living room. Sara followed. "Isn't it getting late you two?"

Lindsey smiled. "Yeah, I guess so. Come on kiddo, let's get cleaned up."

Sara shook her head as they left; Kassie was indeed growing up fast. She picked up a few stray items before checking in on Sydney. It didn't take long before Lindsey and Kassie retuned make-up free.

"Lindsey, I can give you a ride home, or if you want you can just stay here."

"Thanks Sara, if it's not a problem I'll just stay here."

Sara smiled. "No problem at all. Now, off to bed." Lindsey and Kassie ran up the stairs. Sara watched with pride and put her hand over her stomach, then headed to bed herself.

The next morning brought the chaos of breakfast making. Sara, Lindsey, and Kassie were trying to make breakfast for themselves and the other two that would be joining them later.

"Kassie, would you set the table for five?"

"Okay Momma." She took the plates her mother had handed her and headed off to the dining room.

Lindsey was whipping a bowl full of eggs. "What time were they supposed to be here?"

Sara looked at the clock as she counted out slices of bread to be toasted. "Well, your mom called an hour ago and said that they would be here within the hour, so… they're late."

Just then, the front door opened. Grissom followed Catherine inside. They followed the smell of breakfast to the kitchen.

Lindsey looked up as they entered. Sara, unfortunately did not. Grissom noticed this and quickly brought a finger up to his lips. Lindsey and Catherine smiled and watched as he stealthily moved up behind Sara. She was still oblivious to his presents, until he pressed himself against her, his hand goosing her at the same time.

"Ahhh!!" Sara turned as her heart leapt from her chest. They were all laughing except her. "Gil Grissom, that's not funny." However, she soon found herself giggling with them.

Grissom and Catherine helped them finish preparing breakfast. Once they had all sat down and began eating, Grissom looked over at Catherine. She gave him a smile and nodded.

He cleared his throat. "I have an announcement."

Sara stopped him. "Gil, I thought…" she whispered.

"It's not that. You are all looking at the new LVPD Lab Director."

Catherine smiled, Kassie and Lindsey had dumbfounded looks, and Sara nearly dropped her fork. "Are you serious?"

"As a heart attack. My meeting was about possibly changing shifts, and he had informed me that the director had turned in his resignation the day before, and he made me an offer I couldn't refuse." Grissom took a casual bite of his eggs.

Sara was still in shock. "What kind of an offer?"

Grissom wiped his mouth before responding. "Starting next week, Cath will take over as nightshift supervisor. I get to keep my office, work days, I can still participate in field work, I get an assistant to do a majority of the paper work, and a big raise."

"Wait, how can you still do field work?"

"I'm the resident entomologist, and now the lab director, so if I want to do field work, I can."

Sara smiled. "What will happen to Conrad?"

"Oh, I got this." Catherine spoke up. "His already little ego shrunk to the size of a pea. He's pissed, and can't figure out how Gil surpassed him in the company ladder."

Grissom laughed and Sara followed suit relaxing more and more. "Well, if that's what you want, then I'm happy for you." She raised her glass of milk. "To the new lab director."

Everyone followed suit and gently clanged their glasses of milk and orange juice. Kassie was more than thrilled to be included "What's a lab director?" Kassie asked as they continued their salute.

"Well, Sweetie, that means that Daddy is now the boss." Sara answered her.

"Technically I'm not…"

"Shut up Gil." Catherine butted in. "You're the boss of the lab and that's what everyone wanted."

He looked at her confused. "It is?"

She smiled and took a bite of her breakfast. "Well, except Ecklie." They all finished their breakfast in small talk.

Grissom easily fell into his new role at the lab. There wasn't too much of a difference from being night shift supervisor. He had the weekends off, was home every night by six, unless something demanded his attention. Sara was happier, and Kassie was just glad to be spending more time with her dad.

Then the day came when Kassie had to return to school. Grissom had already taken the day off because Sara's morning sickness had really picked up. She was just functioning enough to attend to her own needs, let alone take Kassie to school. He was more than willing to help out.

"Kassie, come on. It's time to go to school." Grissom knocked on her door and when there was no answer, he slowly opened the door and entered. "Kassie, what's wrong?"

She was sitting on the edge of her bed; her backpack was sitting in the middle of the floor. Kassie looked up at him, the evidence of shed tears were crystal clear.

Grissom kneeled in front of her, despite his knees objection. "Sweetie, what's the matter?"

She sniffled. "I miss Jason." More tears began to fall and Grissom was quick to envelope her in his arms.

He rubbed her back. "Mom and I miss him too, but you know what? Think about what Jason would say in this situation."

She sat back. "He would want me to go to school."

"That's right. He would want you to get an education and grow up to be a beautiful young woman. Just remember, he's always with you, here." Grissom pointed to her heart. "Never let him go."

She nodded sadly.

He grabbed her back pack. "Come on, just remember, the first three days of the first grade, you'll be home by noon, then you will get full class days, and I'll come have lunch with you."

Kassie smiled and stood taking his hand as he led her out of the room.

The school was clamoring with children of all ages. Sara had told Grissom about making a stop at the principal's office before taking Kassie to her classroom. Kassie climbed out of the truck, backpack in hand. Grissom walked around to take her hand.

"Come on. I'm sure all of your friends will be excited to see you."

Kassie never looked at him, only let him guide her into the school and through the halls. After meeting with the principal and counselor, Grissom escorted her to her new classroom. Her teacher was already prepared to deal with the extra stress of having a student whom had just lost a sibling, so when Kassie protested Grissom's departure, her teacher was ready.

"Daddy, don't go." She held onto his hand as if it was her only lifeline.

Grissom was about to kneel when her teacher approached. "Kassie, hi, I'm Miss Moore. I'll be your first grade teacher." The brunette kneeled and extended her hand.

Kassie remained fastened to Grissom and buried her head in his leg.

Miss Moore continued. "I'm sure all of your friends from kindergarten are in there, wouldn't you like to see them? I know they are all excited to see you again."

Kassie turned and faced her teacher. Brown eyes interlocked with brown eyes, and slowly Kassie released her grip on Grissom and took the teachers hand. Miss Moore gave Grissom a smile and he thanked her.

"I'll be back around noon to pick you up, alright?"

Kassie nodded and let herself be led into the room filled with children. Grissom remained outside the door for a few extra minutes watching Kassie through the small window. He had to give himself peace of mind before heading back to his ill wife.

Her first few days of school flew by, and on her first full day of school, her dad had showed up to have lunch with her, just like he had promised.

"Daddy!" Kassie ran to Grissom, and he scooped her up.

"Where are you sitting?"

She pointed to a far table and he carried her over. He set Kassie down, and she climbed onto the bench like structure, and Grissom followed suit.

"This is Samantha, but we just call her Sam, and this is Roger." Kassie introduced the other two kids sitting with her.

"Hello Sam…Roger." Grissom politely shook their hands.

"This is my dad, he plays with bugs." Grissom took the 'cool' and 'ew' he received from the children as compliments.

"Well, I don't just play with bugs…"

"Yeah, he catches bad guys too." Kassie was more than willing to show off her father.

"You're a cop." Roger piped up.

"I'm a criminalist for the Las Vegas Crime Lab."

"A crima-what?" Sam asked, not able to pronounce criminalist.

Grissom had to think. First graders can't use big words. "I catch the bad guys."

Before he knew it he had a crowd of first graders around him as he was telling them about different insects in the area. After lunch, Kassie had several other kids wanting to be her friend. Grissom smiled, if anything, he hoped he'd helped.

One evening Grissom was driving Sara in her Suburban, they were headed home from the doctor's office. Fifteen weeks into this pregnancy and she was constantly ill, and with the high risk she carried, her OB was insistent on seeing her every week.

"How are you feeling now?" he asked looking over at her with concern.

"Groggy. Like I've just been put through a juicer."

Grissom raised his eyebrow at her remark.

Sara shook her head. "Sorry,I don't know where that came from." She turned to look back out the windshield. "Gil, look out!"

Grissom turned his head just in time to see a dog sprint out into the car's path. He slammed on the brakes, but it was too late. The thump had already happened. Grissom threw the SUV into park and jumped out to check on the dog he had just hit. Sara was suddenly right behind him. He kneeled to the whimpering animal.

"Gil, she's still alive. We have to take her to the vet." She stood and opened the rear hatch on the SUV.

Grissom gently picked up the dog. "Shhh, its okay girl. We'll get you help." With a grunt, he picked up the dog. "Man, she's heavy." He placed the dog on the towel Sara had spread out, and just as fast as it had all happened, they were off.

They found an emergency vet clinic; Sara held open the door for Grissom as he carried the dog inside. A nurse quickly approached them.

"We hit this dog; I think she's a stray." Sara explained.

"Bring her this way." The nurse motioned for them to follow.

Grissom laid the dog down on the stainless table. "I'll fetch Doctor McCarrol." The nurse said as she left.

Sara was gently stroking the dogs head as she whined. "Shhh, it's gonna be alright. What breed do you think she is Gil?"

Grissom looked over the dog that lay out before him. The solid white hair coat; thick and fairly long, soft, large gentle black eyes and a black nose were highlighted against the white hair. "I'm not sure."

Just then the attending vet entered. "Hi, I'm Doctor McCarrol."

"Gil Grissom." He shook the extended hand.

"Sara."

"And who is this?" Doctor McCarrol asked.

"We don't know. We hit her over on Ninetieth Street. She doesn't have a collar; I'm guessing she's a stray." Sara informed him.

The vet shook his head. "Poor thing. You have no idea how many people will hit a dog and leave it to die on the side of the road."

"What will happen to her?" Grissom asked.

"Well, we'll put her to sleep."

"What!?" Sara intervened. "Can't you help her?"

"Yes, the problem is that without someone to pay for it, there's nothing I can do except put her out of her misery."

The dog turned her head, looked at Sara and began to whine again. "Gil, do something."

Grissom stood frozen in place.

"I'm sure she's somebody's dog, a Great Pyrenees is not a cheap dog."

"Gil." Sara's voiced lowered and was more demanding that he act.

Finally he reacted. "We'll pay to have her treated. And, I guess if there's no word of an owner by the time she's healed, I guess we'll take her home with us."

Sara stood and wrapped her arms around him. "Thank you."

"Very well. We'll get her examined more thoroughly and let you know of what procedures will be needed." Doctor McCarrol took their information and ordered up a series of tests.

Sara and Grissom left hand in hand. She thanked him many times on the way home. "She'll need a name." Sara said just as they pulled onto their street.

"No names, until we know that we will be her new owners. I don't want you getting attached to a dog we might not get. And don't say anything to Kassie; she's still on her wanting a dog rants."

She smiled at him just as his phone rang.

"Grissom." He sat and listened to the person on the other end. "Alright, that's fine. Thanks doc."

"So, she's fixable?"

He looked at her. "You talk as if she's an appliance." Sara shrugged her shoulders. "Yes, she's fixable. And the owners tracked her down." Sara's face fell. Even she was excited about getting a dog. "Once they found out what it was going to cost to _fix_ her, they refused treatment and instructed Dr. McCarrol to euthanize her."

Then Sara's face turned. "Oh, hell no, Gil. You call him back and tell him…"

"That's why he called. He asked if we were still willing to save her. I said that was fine. Now you can think of a name."

Sara squealed as if she had won the lottery and gave him a hug that threatened to squeeze the life out of him.

Grissom hugged her back. "I see someone's feeling better."

She pushed away and looked back at him. "Yeah, until your kid starts bugging me again."

He shrugged his shoulders and escorted her inside.

Two weeks later the call came in that the dog was ready to go home. Grissom made the solo trip to the vet clinic. He approached the desk and gave his name.

"Grissom, yup, here it is. Okay, that will be $1,245 even."

"What!?" He about fell over. "It's a dog."

"Yes, I know, but isn't it amazing at how fast they become a member of the family?" The girl behind the desk said.

Grissom just sighed and handed over a credit card. He watched as she swiped it then handed him a receipt to sign. The dollar amount was printed in bold letters to make sure he knew just how much money he was spending. Just as he handed back the receipt, the door opened and a nurse emerged with the large white dog.

"The hair will grow back; we had to shave her for surgery. She has a few pins in her hip and is not to be going up and down stairs for a few more weeks. The limping will subside with time, but she should make a full recovery. These are her pain meds, and Doctor McCarrol wants to see her in a week to make sure she's progressing well." The nurse handed Grissom the leash. "She's such a sweetheart. I hope you get along with her alright."

"Thanks, she's for my six year old daughter." Grissom responded.

The nurse's face lit up. "Oh, Great Pyrenees' are great dogs for children; they are also great guard dogs."

That little bit of information made Grissom feel much better about his decision. He thanked the nurses and took the new dog out and headed home. Once he was within a few minutes of the house, he called Sara to inform her of his approach.

As he expected Sara was holding Sydney with Kassie standing anxiously on the front porch. He pulled into the drive way and Kassie was at his legs in no time.

"Doggie, doggie, where is she!"

He couldn't help but laugh. "Come on."

Sara was already standing at the back of the SUV. Grissom opened the hatch and Kassie let out a screech that would have woke the dead. He lifted the dog out and placed her on the ground.

Kassie instantly had her arms around the white beast. "She's beautiful." She petted the thick white hair. "Why is there no hair down there?"

Sara looked at Grissom and he looked back wide eyed. Telling her that he was the one that ran over the dog wasn't going to happen. So they fibbed.

"She had a hip problem and had to have surgery. Her owners couldn't afford it, so Daddy paid her medical bills." Sara explained. It wasn't totally lying.

Kassie hugged the dog again. "Who wouldn't want you?" She stood and took the leash. "What's her name?"

"You'll have to pick one out for her." Grissom said as he closed the hatch.

The little girl thought for a moment. "June. Her name is June."

This puzzled Grissom and Sara. "Why June?" Sara asked.

Kassie looked up to her parents. "Because that's when Jason and I came to live here. Come on June, let's go inside."

Sara could only look at Grissom, trying to stop the tears from falling as they formed. Being pregnant, it was hopeless. He moved to her and pulled her into his arms trying not to crush Sydney between them.

They went into the house and found Kassie sitting on the living room floor watching a movie; June was lying right beside her.

"Good idea, Honey." Grissom kissed Sara's cheek. "Good idea."

Three weeks went by. Kassie was enjoying school and her new dog. June slept upstairs with her; she had become her new protector. Sydney was beginning to crawl around. Surprising to Grissom, June followed the baby everywhere she scrawled to. He just couldn't believe that the dog was so in tuned with the girls.

He entered the house and it seemed at first no one was at home. Sara was supposed to get her first prenatal scan today, and he wasn't going to miss it for the world. "Helloooo." He called out. The barking started upstairs and quickly was at his feet. "Whoa June, calm down there girl. He patted the dog and she quickly retreated back to her room.

Grissom went into his bedroom, the bed was empty. "Sara?"

She emerged from the bathroom, her face red from crying.

"Honey, what's wrong?" He pulled her into his chest.

Sara let a few more sobs and tears escape. "You know how we talked about not wanting to know the baby's sex?"

"Mmm." He used his hands to rub her back, trying to sooth her.

"I want to know if she can tell us."

Grissom released a small breath. "Whatever you want."

Once she had calmed, they loaded up Sydney and headed out. Grissom left Sara to her thoughts as he took Sydney into Catherine's house.

"Where's Sara?" Catherine asked as she took Sydney into her arms.

"She's waiting in the truck. I don't know what to think, she's…she's…" He couldn't find the words.

"Emotional?"

Grissom didn't answer vocally; a slight scoff was enough for him. "We'll be back after a while."

"Take your time." She called out as he exited.

Another fifteen minutes and they were sitting in the waiting room of Sara's obstetrician. Her hand was constantly squeezing his, she was already pregnant, and Grissom couldn't figure out why she was so nervous.

"Sara?" A nurse called out from an open door.

Grissom stood and gave Sara a slight tug to bring her back to reality. "Honey?" She looked up and stood with him to follow the nurse.

They were led to the exam room. Sara climbed onto the table and sat facing Grissom. "Hold me."

He stepped forward and wrapped his arms around her, trying to calm her nervousness. She melted in his embrace; he always knew how to hold her just right, making her feel completely at ease.

"Hello, Sara." The fiery red haired Doctor Gloria, as she liked to be called, entered. "Ready?"

Sara nodded slightly and held onto Grissom's hand as she laid back. Gloria pulled up her shirt revealing her belly. She flipped the machine on and while it was warming up proceeded to place the gel on Sara's stomach.

As all of this was happening, Sara kept her eyes on Grissom, and he kept his eyes locked with her. Suddenly the small room filled with a whooshing noise. They broke eye contact and looked to Gloria; she turned the monitor so they could see their baby. Sara's eyes filled with tears once again as she looked at the figure that was growing within her.

"Heartbeat is strong, and everything looks good." She paused and let them watch for a little while longer. "So, do you want to know the baby's sex?"

Sara looked back to Grissom. "Whatever you want, honey."

She paused for a moment before turning back to Gloria, and nodding.

Gloria smiled and turned the screen so she could see it. It only took her a few moments before she had an answer. "Alright." She returned the screen so they could see. "You're carrying a baby boy."

Grissom's head fell to Sara's arm as his tears formed easily. Sara extended her free arm to touch the screen. "A boy?" Her question was in disbelief.

"Yes, a boy, and a healthy one at that."

He felt Sara squeeze his hand harder and Grissom looked back up to the screen. A few tears escaped as he looked at the image. "A son. My son."

* * *

Well, it's been real, and it's been fun; it's been real fun, but it must end. I'm hoping in some way I ended it the way many were hoping. I've had so much fun writing this and I hoped you have all enjoyed it. You don't have to say it; thespoon is already pestering me about a sequel. Maybe with some encouragement in the form of reviews; wink, wink, nudge, nudge, it just might happen. Take care ya'll, and I'm already in the process of working on another story, so stay tuned for that one.

Thanks everyone.

TDCSI


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